1 hour ago, The Boehly Babes said:

There’s quite a lot of issues with Maresca, not all down to the football.

Let’s start with the fact he isn’t very likeable as a bloke, in the same vein as FSW & AVB, just doesn’t seem to have any endearing qualities. He claims to be Italian but shows up to most matches looking like a Big Issue seller.

Couple that up with the fact he is trying to instil a system that has been slowly phased out across Europe, it’s essentially Pep-lite with even less risk and less attacking impetus.

Then you take into account the squad we have, it is built for fast free flowing football and instead is being shoehorned into slow monotonous recycling of possession.

Everyone remembers how electric we were when we had Chilwell & James overlapping and the threat we possessed every attack? Now we have Cucurella playing somewhere between an 8 & a 10 and just getting in the way of our creative players every attack and the other fullback becoming a CB (?!)

Estevao, Palmer, JP, Garnacho these are all quick thinking, quick footed players who thrive when the game is played at speed and direct. We nullify our biggest threats for the ‘good of the system’.

Now if we had a squad with less talented players and not as attack minded, maybe Maresca’s approach would be right, but we don’t and he isn’t.

Idk if people still judge managers on appearance. The only one closest to that was Sarri.

The annoying thing about Maresca is his style of play and his subs. How we feel about the ownership is irrelevant considering their only flaw(on the pitch) is massively overspending money on non-key positions but the scattergun approach has some hits even if plenty of them are misses.

Right now he has players that can play fast football with 4 midfielders that can play direct, 2 strikers that thrive on fast football, 4 speedy/tricky wingers and 3 side backs that like to go up. Our team should be playing fast football instead of this slow football where our GK and CBs get so much time on the ball.

Then there're wannabe Pep moments where he puts midfielders in RBs(worked only because Caicedo is a beast), RBs in midfield, 3 CBs but shoehorns a CB instead of putting the hybrid CB/RB that we have, not giving Estevao good minutes etc.

Football's a simple game. Why complicate it for no reason

2 hours ago, Snedger said:

This bit is interesting. I think we all like to ultimately see the team win, but I am of the mindset where being entertained is pretty important too. Football is a form of entertainment for me, not just a form of reflected glory.

At last. A breath of fresh air. Thank you. Entertainment should form a high standing in the priority list, I agree. Of course I want us to win both games and currently the results are most important. But I want us to entertain. I want to enjoy our football. I want us to be making a statement.

2 hours ago, WhiteWall said:

At last. A breath of fresh air. Thank you. Entertainment should form a high standing in the priority list, I agree. Of course I want us to win both games and currently the results are most important. But I want us to entertain. I want to enjoy our football. I want us to be making a statement.

2 hours ago, WhiteWall said:

At last. A breath of fresh air. Thank you. Entertainment should form a high standing in the priority list, I agree. Of course I want us to win both games and currently the results are most important. But I want us to entertain. I want to enjoy our football. I want us to be making a statement.

Before Maresca managed to straitjacket

2 hours ago, WhiteWall said:

At

2 hours ago, WhiteWall said:

At last. A breath of fresh air. Thank you. Entertainment should form a high standing in the priority list, I agree. Of course I want us to win both games and currently the results are most important. But I want us to entertain. I want to enjoy our football. I want us to be making a statement.

Early last season we played entertaining, winning football until that is , Maresca got us playing his controlled , straitjacket football..

Even Danny Murphy said back then that his secret joy was watching Chelsea play. . We can see now why Leicester fans were moaning about the football they were watching despicable being top of the Championship.

2 hours ago, WhiteWall said:

6 hours ago, GarnachoCheese said:

No one is upset about us winning, however a win shouldn't paint over a poor performance and glaring issues. In the same vein as a goal shouldn't paint over a poor individual performance.

I just think it's very very hard for a game against a bottom half premier league side to be that entertaining. When we play a side that actually wants to play football, we are entertaining. I think it's nostalgia bias to say Chelsea under Jose MK1 or other managers was always entertaining, he did invent the "park the bus" phrase to complain against how teams played us.

There are issues, some of those are down to Maresca but I'm not fully convinced he can't fix them. The united game was shocking, hopefully he's learnt from that.

Also, I don't understand the unlikable thing about Maresca some say. He seems like the type of bloke I'd love to have a beer with. Unlike Potter or Sarri or Poch.

16 hours ago, SydneyChelsea said:

Yet those that defend Maresca after poor performances simply argue the inverse - Every mistake is Sanchez/Chalobah/Tosin/Gittens/Garnacho/injuries/no striker/too many strikers/UEFA/FIFA's fault, and everything good is Maresca's understated genius

Except for nearly knocking out Enzo kicking the ball directly into his head... Sanchez has upped his game and performances and reduced the mistakes.

As for Maresca, he could take Prime Messia, Ronaldo and Benzema as a front 3 and his system would remove their ability to score goals. We've been playing without a striker for nearly 12 months. His formation isnt reliant on a striker. Jackson not scoring was praised by him, he's tried to turn another winger into a stirker in George.

Having said that, we're second behind Arsenal which means im internally conflicted as to whether this is good, the team is good, or other teams are simply a lot worse, and how we are second without a striker who can put the ball in the onion bag is beyond my comprehension... then i remember this is Chelsea.

9 minutes ago, bisright1 said:

I just think it's very very hard for a game against a bottom half premier league side to be that entertaining. When we play a side that actually wants to play football, we are entertaining. I think it's nostalgia bias to say Chelsea under Jose MK1 or other managers was always entertaining, he did invent the "park the bus" phrase to complain against how teams played us.

There are issues, some of those are down to Maresca but I'm not fully convinced he can't fix them. The united game was shocking, hopefully he's learnt from that.

Also, I don't understand the unlikable thing about Maresca some say. He seems like the type of bloke I'd love to have a beer with. Unlike Potter or Sarri or Poch.

Said last year, Maresca is a lovely chap but out of his depth. Not seen anything yet to change my mind about him tactics wise given how he's set us up this season. I do think his selections have cost us points.

I'd be far more inclined to neck a Moretti and chain smoke with Sarri tbh, but us smokers stick together.

4 hours ago, RMH said:

You say that all those managers doing a great job at smaller clubs and with worse teams maybe wouldn't work at Chelsea, which is true, but then you are ready to defend Maresca, a coach that jumped from the Championship to Chelsea, without having had any prove that he could make it at a bigger club than Leicester, and continues to fail at Chelsea. I'm sure, based on that, that either of those coaches mentioned would be doing a better job than Maresca, or at least we wouldn't be bored to death by the football played.

And you mention Mourinho, Conte, Ancelotti or Tuchel as not being perfect, right you are, but they were great coaches that delivered important trophies (and not only at Chelsea)! Maresca, other than absolute borefests, has delivered a save-by-the-bell top four, a glorified friendly Cup, and a champions of the farmers league trophy. And all that, saved by individual brilliancy and players deciding to ditch Maresca's tactics, e.g. Palmer words to the effect after beating Forest at their turf and the conference league final (except the final against PSG which was superb, have to admit).

I mean we have different definitions of failure. He's won us a couple of trophies, and we're sitting in 2nd. That's not a failure in my eyes, but Potter's tenure here was a failure. Mind you, I don't think Potter is a terrible manager - just was out of his depth with us.

I wasn't a fan of Maresca's appointment when he joined. I just don't know who would do a better job replacing him. My initial point really is summer up in your comment, though. Us being in 2nd place makes me laugh, as you would imagine we were in a relegation scrap given the comments on Maresca "the failure".

We win despite him, not because of him.

1 hour ago, bluelightening said:

Said last year, Maresca is a lovely chap but out of his depth. Not seen anything yet to change my mind about him tactics wise given how he's set us up this season. I do think his selections have cost us points.

I'd be far more inclined to neck a Moretti and chain smoke with Sarri tbh, but us smokers stick together.

That's fine I'm okay with that view. I just don't really think it needs to be hammered home every time we win a game and it's not that exciting!

Roll on tonight though. Big test for Maresca and whether he's progressing as a manager or not.

Maybe Pep was the poundland Maresca all along

Incredible result tonight. Don't know how the players managed such an amazing performance despite the tactics and line up from Maresca.

I'm even more convinced that we need a new manager tonight, the way he put the team out was begging for a loss. We were so lucky Torres missed that chance because we were on for a hiding.

Thank god estevao turned up because we'd have been embarrassed tonight. Time for blueco to pull the trigger on this fraud.

If we can play the likes of PSG & Barca every week then Maresca is the man, sets us up perfectly to nullify and exploit such teams, maybe a European Super League isn’t that bad an idea after all…

1 minute ago, bisright1 said:

Incredible result tonight. Don't know how the players managed such an amazing performance despite the tactics and line up from Maresca.

I'm even more convinced that we need a new manager tonight, the way he put the team out was begging for a loss. We were so lucky Torres missed that chance because we were on for a hiding.

Thank god estevao turned up because we'd have been embarrassed tonight. Time for blueco to pull the trigger on this fraud.

(Lets have some fun guys, time to celebrate)

Got everything bang on, let the handbrake off, more of this.

12 minutes ago, dkw said:

Got everything bang on, let the handbrake off, more of this.

💯

Love the pro/anti Maresca chat but let's just celebrate the night

21 minutes ago, dkw said:

Got everything bang on, let the handbrake off, more of this.

His best performances as a coach is when he abandons the slow tempo. Maresca could easily change the minds of us doubters very quickly if tonight was a regular thing.

Credit where it’s due Maresca executed the plan perfectly tonight.

Maresca planned well and executed well.

Spot on today 👌👌👌

Games like this I don’t judge him on because he always gets the solution right and the opposition managers are too egotistical to change.

I will judge him on the bottom half teams or the lesser teams.

Having said that well f**king done £land Pep great game!!

Edited November 25, 2025Nov 25 by El regreso

Very well coached game tonight, I get that we can't play against a high line like that every week but it felt like the players were actually allowed to go for it rather than piss around with it for 90 mins.

Credit to Maresca and the team today.

He does seem to have a decent record against the "top" sides. If he can fix our habit of losing or drawing random games against sh*t opposition, we will be in great shape.

Congrats Maresca, now time to do this every week.

31 minutes ago, timetowaste said:

Very well coached game tonight, I get that we can't play against a high line like that every week but it felt like the players were actually allowed to go for it rather than piss around with it for 90 mins.

I feel like we would have beaten anybody tonight, no matter how they played. We were on it the same way we were against PSG.

For balance. What are the odds he changes the first XI for arsenal for no f**king reason

Well done to Maresca, that was a good performance from the team.