Does anybody else in the league mention playing a game every 3-4 days as much as Maresca? This is the reality of being a team in the Champions League. This applies to every top team in the top leagues. It's not ideal, but our position isn't unique. We run less than almost every team in the league and we rotate more than anybody in Europe, so we should be better prepared for it than most.

21 minutes ago, Scott Harris said:

Does anybody else in the league mention playing a game every 3-4 days as much as Maresca? This is the reality of being a team in the Champions League. This applies to every top team in the top leagues. It's not ideal, but our position isn't unique. We run less than almost every team in the league and we rotate more than anybody in Europe, so we should be better prepared for it than most.

Hi default is to find excuses, I don’t understand how he’s shocked and now realising one of the biggest clubs in the world will play multiple times per week

4 hours ago, 2211 said:

Maresca has just he has had “the worst 48 hours since he’s been at the club” because of the lack of support.

To me it just proves he truly doesn’t understand the size of the club he’s the manager of.

He’s not at Leicester anymore , the expectations and the scrutiny is on a different level.

If it’s all too much for him he could always resign…

The man is a moron. Had a big smug face when talking about his two full backs in midfield because it’s not been complete dogsh*t for the first time ever!

Personally I hope he’s been reading this forum & his comments are about me specifically.

1 minute ago, Munkunku said:

Personally I hope he’s been reading this forum & his comments are about me specifically.

As he said he’s very happy with the support, he’s absolutely definitely 100% not read this forum!

1 minute ago, Snedger said:

As he said he’s very happy with the support, he’s absolutely definitely 100% not read this forum!

He doesn’t have any support to be happy about.

4 hours ago, 2211 said:

Maresca has just he has had “the worst 48 hours since he’s been at the club” because of the lack of support

Saw the interview on MOTD, Murphy and Shearer are saying it was aimed at the board but Murphy then said that Maresca needs to be careful because the board wont stand for it

Most fans are sick of him and obviously things have gone on behind closed doors and the pressure is building

Edited December 13, 2025Dec 13 by Caps_Lock_King

He'll have a couple of good results, get all smug again, then rotate 7 players and lose to a bottom half team and f**k up in the CL again and then repeat, over and over again.

8 minutes ago, Munkunku said:

He doesn’t have any support to be happy about.

That’s true. But where is Evisy?

20 minutes ago, Zeta said:

He'll have a couple of good results, get all smug again, then rotate 7 players and lose to a bottom half team and f**k up in the CL again and then repeat, over and over again.

Maresca is merely executing a brief.
https://tribuna.com/en/news/2025-11-06-chelsea-hierarchy-encouraging-enzo-marescas-rotation-policy-as-part-of-longterm-strategy/

You can’t hoard young talent and not play them. Rotation is the only way this squad construction makes any sense. You don’t buy 19–23-year-olds and treat them like finished products.

The next manager will rotate in exactly the same way, because he will be told to do so — it’s a job requirement. Complaints about rotation, IMO, should be directed at the ownership, not the head coach.

This is separate from whether Maresca is the right man to develop these players. I’m specifically talking about the rotation policy itself.

Edited December 14, 2025Dec 14 by acaeus

2 hours ago, El regreso said:

I read that as he’s starting to lose support internally because the clowns are starting to see that unless you are winning you can get commercial success.

Yet they've miserably failed to capitalize when we finished strong last season. Back in the CL, first ever CWC and completing UEFA, and still nothing.

Wouldn't blame Maresca for the lack of commercial success.

1 hour ago, Caps_Lock_King said:

Saw the interview on MOTD, Murphy and Shearer are saying it was aimed at the board but Murphy then said that Maresca needs to be careful because the board wont stand for it

Most fans are sick of him and obviously things have gone on behind closed doors and the pressure is building

I've called him a yes man since day 1, so if he is going after the board, then I'll back him. I'm not sure what he was going on about though, maybe he was told he won't be getting any new players in January.

44 minutes ago, acaeus said:

Maresca is merely executing a brief.
https://tribuna.com/en/news/2025-11-06-chelsea-hierarchy-encouraging-enzo-marescas-rotation-policy-as-part-of-longterm-strategy/

You can’t hoard young talent and not play them. Rotation is the only way this squad construction makes any sense. You don’t buy 19–23-year-olds and treat them like finished products.

The next manager will rotate in exactly the same way, because he will be told to do so — it’s a job requirement. Complaints about rotation, IMO, should be directed at the ownership, not the head coach.

This is separate from whether Maresca is the right man to develop these players. I’m specifically talking about the rotation policy itself.

This is why we won’t attract proven winners as head coach (we don’t employ managers any more).

We have to get lucky with our appointments now. Would Glasner or Iraola be able to work under the club’s model? I’m not so sure…..

6 minutes ago, 19seventyone said:

This is why we won’t attract proven winners as head coach (we don’t employ managers any more).

We have to get lucky with our appointments now. Would Glasner or Iraola be able to work under the club’s model? I’m not so sure…..

For all Maresca's faults, and there's a fair few of them, the boards model of only buying certain players is unworkable if you want to bring real success to Chelsea beyond just being a cup team that may or may not scrape into the top 4.

Semenyo for £65m with add-ons is less of a gamble than £60m Gittens, but one is 21 years old and raw and the other has performed well in the Premier League and is 25.

But guess which one we went for??

8 hours ago, Deino said:

Baldo needs to start playing Estevao more. 10 minutes per 3 games is hilarious for someone of his talent

Yup, I truly feel sorry for him - he's signed his life away, waited and waited and finally come here - he played a bit and shone and since then he's been parked on the ff'ing bench watching other fairly mediocre players get the nod ahead of him.

Must be very very frustrating for him - like Cole Palmer at Manchester City ?

And look what happened to Cole - Our manager is a w**ker.

The fans/public want to see him play - he's one of the biggest talents in the PL and the bald twat isn't using him; that doesn't help the team and it doesn't help the club selling shirts either.

Other thing I really don't like about this guy is he stinks of favoritism:

Why don't we see Enzo, Gusto or either of the Pedros warming the bench, being protected ?

Yesterday, takes off Palmer and puts on Santos ?

FFS - What's he doing ? - Trying to tell Estavao: "you may be a big star but I'm the boss so you must respect me..."

FF'ing ridiculous - cannot sack him soon enough for me.

7 hours ago, Hitherto said:

I am afraid that, despite today's win, he is just not good enough for Chelsea. Considering the quality of players at his disposal, we should be playing much better than we are. I think its best he finishes the season and bring in someone else.

I am not a Maresca fan but i detest the strategy our SDs have deployed.. i dont see the great quality you talk about -- Even when fully fit this is what it looks like

Sanchez - top 6 keeper (not title winning)

James - Title winning FB

Fofana - top 6 (injuries permitting)

Chalobah - top 10

Cuco - Top 6/Title wining

Caicedo - Title winning

Enzo - Top 6

Palmer - Title Winning

Neto - Top 6

Pedro - Top 6/Top 10

Garnacho - Top 6/Top 10

Given the above we are exactly where we should be..

I honestly think this notion that Maresca is forced to rotate the squad by the board is rubbish and tbh is giving him an excuse for his poor management.

He's had a pretty easy ride from the media, so these comments, if they aren't about the fans, can only be aimed at the internals at the club.

Given the recent results won't be what the billionaire owners expect, it probably boils down to a bun fight between the sporting directors blaming Maresca for mis-managing the players they have bought, or Maresca blaming the sporting directors for buying players that aren't ready to compete at the top level. CYA and corporate politics no doubt in full swing.

I've got my popcorn ready ... !

On 10/12/2025 at 21:55, Bob stark said:

You simply can't look at it this way. We can mock every single player in Chelsea shirt or our opp but all of them are elite athlete. If you don't play close to 100%, your opp can make you look silly.

I remember reading interview about nba player who was criticized for being able to play golf but cannot play in games. He said he can suit up tomorrow for pick up game but if he need to chase NBA player, he will pull something after 2 min.

I get it Bob, it was tongue in cheek banter,but my point is, given the size of this squad against others there should be no reason to come up with this type of excuse and now I see he’s whining that he wasn’t loved over a couple of days…get rid of him FFS.

39 minutes ago, Sexyfootball said:

He's had a pretty easy ride from the media, so these comments, if they aren't about the fans, can only be aimed at the internals at the club.

Given the recent results won't be what the billionaire owners expect, it probably boils down to a bun fight between the sporting directors blaming Maresca for mis-managing the players they have bought, or Maresca blaming the sporting directors for buying players that aren't ready to compete at the top level. CYA and corporate politics no doubt in full swing.

I've got my popcorn ready ... !

which is exactly where we were with poch two years ago. He wanted to keep the players the board sold them. Which probably means the club has decided what players they want to sell between now and the summer and Maresca disagrees?

23 minutes ago, bluelightening said:

which is exactly where we were with poch two years ago. He wanted to keep the players the board sold them. Which probably means the club has decided what players they want to sell between now and the summer and Maresca disagrees?

I think this is it.

You can't turn down the Chelsea job when it is offered, and I'm quite sure it was made clear up front by the owners and SDs what the role entailed ... "you are just the coach of the players we provide ... ". I think you take it on that basis, with the hope that you'll establish yourself and then get more say down the line.

Maresca, as Pochettino was, is now caught between a rock and a hard place between the need to win every game, and the inability to do that with the resources provided. Probably imagined he'd get his feet in the door, play the patient game, and build to a point where he'd have more influence (via better results, couple of trophies etc). But as Poch found, it doesn't work like that with the muppets above him, who who so convinced by the myth of their own genius that they are in complete denial of reality, and continue to expect silk purses to be made with the sow's ears they give you ...

Take that for what it's worth, if it's true I'm glad the board acknowledge he's over complicating things

26 minutes ago, Sexyfootball said:

I think this is it.

You can't turn down the Chelsea job when it is offered, and I'm quite sure it was made clear up front by the owners and SDs what the role entailed ... "you are just the coach of the players we provide ... ". I think you take it on that basis, with the hope that you'll establish yourself and then get more say down the line.

Maresca, as Pochettino was, is now caught between a rock and a hard place between the need to win every game, and the inability to do that with the resources provided. Probably imagined he'd get his feet in the door, play the patient game, and build to a point where he'd have more influence (via better results, couple of trophies etc). But as Poch found, it doesn't work like that with the muppets above him, who who so convinced by the myth of their own genius that they are in complete denial of reality, and continue to expect silk purses to be made with the sow's ears they give you ...

Agree, which makes me think it doesnt matter who comes in to manage us... TBF, the football is aweful but its getting results this season and despite my many misgivings about Maresca, think moving him on before the summer would be mid season suicide.

So what players are for the chop to pay off the shareholders?

36 minutes ago, timetowaste said:

Take that for what it's worth, if it's true I'm glad the board acknowledge he's over complicating things

Only going to end one way for him if that’s true. The owners got rid of his predecessors fairly sharply once they had a go at them.

1 hour ago, timetowaste said:

Take that for what it's worth, if it's true I'm glad the board acknowledge he's over complicating things

This is exactly how I interpreted those comments. He was probably grilled on why our season has derailed in such a short span and probably why he’s rotating so much. Even Beavis and Butthead knows you can’t rotate that much and be consistent.

He also mentioned the fans supports him and suspiciously left out the “Club” which suggests this is the first time he’s been doubted by the club.