The board have given Enzo two coloured pens; a blue and a green and are telling him to draw a sun!

12 hours ago, SydneyChelsea said:

On the fence for me, for the reasons that @axman2526 eloquently explained. It doesn't matter who is in the dugout as long as Winstanley and Stewart are still here. Nearly 4 years in and they are yet to make a single positive transfer contribution, other than bringing in Joe Shields and outbidding for blindingly obvious targets. There is no strategy for the squad and Cobham is being left to rot as well, everything is scarily like Bartomeu's running of Barcelona.

On Maresca himself - I think he has the potential to be a good coach but I am outright concerned he doesn't have the humility to want to change. He knows the problems in the squad, he knows the football is slow and stagnant but I think he genuinely believes he is right and everyone else is wrong. It's now to the extent he blames everything - the players, the squad building, the niche roles of players, the refs, the red cards, the weather - but himself for a malaise. He carries on like Conte or Mourinho when it all goes wrong, without the history of success to show for it, and I think managers like that are outdated and outclassed in the modern game.

What’s more infuriating is that bar Pedro, I can’t think of any player they’ve signed in those 3 years that genuinely improved the starting XI.

• Olise they fumbled in catastrophic fashion when we were the only club after him at the time.

• Simons was for optics while they prioritized their real target in Garnacho.

• Maignan, like Olise, was there for the taking but couldn’t agree on a f**king £5m disparity.

• Kudus was available but they prioritized the £60m on an even more brainless version of Mudryk in Gittens.

I’m likely forgetting loads more.

16 minutes ago, Mod said:

The board have given Enzo two coloured pens; a blue and a green and are telling him to draw a sun!

Sure but then he goes on and draws a crescent moon and tries to pose it as an eclipsed sun for everyone else! Just draw a damn circle with some lines around it, no need to overcomplicate stuff!

37 minutes ago, Sconnie Blue said:

What’s more infuriating is that bar Pedro, I can’t think of any player they’ve signed in those 3 years that genuinely improved the starting XI.

• Olise they fumbled in catastrophic fashion when we were the only club after him at the time.

• Simons was for optics while they prioritized their real target in Garnacho.

• Maignan, like Olise, was there for the taking but couldn’t agree on a f**king £5m disparity.

• Kudus was available but they prioritized the £60m on an even more brainless version of Mudryk in Gittens.

I’m likely forgetting loads more.

Which of the Pedros? Certainly not the one with 1 solitary contribution in 6 PL games this season.

4 hours ago, RMH said:

I agree with you on the board and SDs, who first and foremost interest in Chelsea is to make money, not to win. But, I also think that, with a proper coach, this team could get top 4 and have a decent run in the CL and domestic Cups. Both things are not exclusive. As things stand, with Maresca we won't get top 4 and I don't see us getting through the league stage in Europe or beating Wolves in the league Cup.

The key is who the SDs would target as a coach, they've got to be on low wages and be content to work with what they give him, no matter how unbalanced the squad is. And there's the problem.

If I thought we would replace maresca with a proper coach I would be all for him getting the boot mate. I just don't believe they would target such a coach.

2 hours ago, dkw said:

So why did the previous 2 managers at Palace not called Roy Hodgson do so badly in comparison to Glasner? One did so bad that they had to drag Hodgson out of retirement to save them from relegation, Ive no idea where you can pull a statement like that from.

I might have been a bit quick to include Palace in that list, however they did have success under Hodgson and Viera despite then crumbling.

I really like Glasner, I thought he was an incredible appointment for them at the time. I'm just always wary of pinching managers from mid table clubs doing well.

3 hours ago, Bebe1980 said:

And maybe someone marking the back post...

This

Everytime we concede a set piece there’s nearly always a spare man for the opposition.

The way Maresca sets us up to mark at set pieces is amateurish.

In what world should 4 men go for the same ball and leave an overload at the far post like we did against Brentford for their last minute goal.

22 minutes ago, 2211 said:

This

Everytime we concede a set piece there’s nearly always a spare man for the opposition.

The way Maresca sets us up to mark at set pieces is amateurish.

In what world should 4 men go for the same ball and leave an overload at the far post like we did against Brentford for their last minute goal.

Again. Lot of people brushing off just how import Colwill was.

This was hardly an issue when Colwill was in the side. We lost the only constant and the only vocal leader in defence. He was the one organizing the back line. Tosin, Fofana and Chalobah can’t do what Colwill did.

1 hour ago, Brigadeiro Mk II said:

Sure but then he goes on and draws a crescent moon and tries to pose it as an eclipsed sun for everyone else! Just draw a damn circle with some lines around it, no need to overcomplicate stuff!

This is my favourite post in a long time 😆

14 minutes ago, Sconnie Blue said:

Again. Lot of people brushing off just how import Colwill was.

This was hardly an issue when Colwill was in the side. We lost the only constant and the only vocal leader in defence. He was the one organizing the back line. Tosin, Fofana and Chalobah can’t do what Colwill did.

And therein is the recruitment problem. Did our defence become a joke when JT was out? Nope, that entire back line were leaders and organizers.

1 minute ago, axman2526 said:

And therein is the recruitment problem. Did our defence become a joke when JT was out? Nope, that entire back line were leaders and organizers.

Yup. Even with Colwill fit, Chalobah is the most experienced CB in the team.

Love the lad but that’s a big, big problem.

52 minutes ago, Sconnie Blue said:

Yup. Even with Colwill fit, Chalobah is the most experienced CB in the team.

Love the lad but that’s a big, big problem.

Aye why recruit players maresca clearly needs when you can sign garnacho who he won't play?

Just now, axman2526 said:

Aye why recruit players maresca clearly needs when you can sign garnacho who he won't play?

Maresca isn’t off the hook either.

He co-signed the Gittens signing and won’t play him either.

Only worry about Glasner is that 3 atb seems to work much better when playing on the counter as a smaller side, rather than as a larger side trying to dominate.

Just look at Man Utd, against the other big teams under Amorim they usually do alright (dominated Arsenal in the 1st game this season), yet in the games they're supposed to win they look terrible.

9 minutes ago, just said:

Gallardo! Is it that a suggestion to get the best out of Fernandez and Garnacho?

2 hours ago, bisright1 said:

I might have been a bit quick to include Palace in that list, however they did have success under Hodgson and Viera despite then crumbling.

I really like Glasner, I thought he was an incredible appointment for them at the time. I'm just always wary of pinching managers from mid table clubs doing well.

No argument here with the bit in bold, its a completely different role at a club like Chelsea.

Edited September 29, 2025Sep 29 by dkw

I vote for the shake it all about option like the last polls.

2 hours ago, Sconnie Blue said:

Maresca isn’t off the hook either.

He co-signed the Gittens signing and won’t play him either.

Depends what you believe. Some press reports said he really wanted garnacho. it sure does not look like it.

Voted for, "afraid it does not really matter."

If Amorim is setting a new threshold for sacking, Maresca will keep his job for the next decade. 😅

2 hours ago, dkw said:

No argument here with the bit in bold, its a completely different role at a club like Chelsea.

Aye true for Gallardo, but also true for every name anyone has mentioned here, apart from the one guy mentioning Klopp who was clearly sniffing something if he thinks that would be on the cards.

Gallardo at least has managed at a highly intense pressurized environment, won big trophies as a player and manager and seems to get his teams playing the type of football people ask for.

With few and far names out there to come in, I'm just scrambling for options. Especially one that might be content coming in this side of Christmas.

10 minutes ago, bisright1 said:

Aye true for Gallardo, but also true for every name anyone has mentioned here, apart from the one guy mentioning Klopp who was clearly sniffing something if he thinks that would be on the cards.

Gallardo at least has managed at a highly intense pressurized environment, won big trophies as a player and manager and seems to get his teams playing the type of football people ask for.

With few and far names out there to come in, I'm just scrambling for options. Especially one that might be content coming in this side of Christmas.

Which South American coach came to Europe and found success? Bielsa is a footballing purist but not one that actually found sustained success, let alone achieve it.

14 minutes ago, Sconnie Blue said:

Which South American coach came to Europe and found success? Bielsa is a footballing purist but not one that actually found sustained success, let alone achieve it.

Very few... think Simeone at club level, and our "own" Scolari for Portugal.

It usually goes the other way: 2nd/3rd tier European coaches making an impact in south america.

Incidentally, Filipe Luis is having a very interesting start to his coaching career at Flamengo.

2 minutes ago, acaeus said:

Very few... think Simeone at club level, and our "own" Scolari for Portugal.

It usually goes the other way: 2nd/3rd tier European coaches making an impact in south america.

Incidentally, Filipe Luis is having a very interesting start to his coaching career at Flamengo.

Cheers. Can't believe I forgot the blatant obvious.

I'm not closing the door on Gallardo (he was someone actually I brought up before we signed Maresca), it's just interesting how there are hardly any South American coaches that came to Europe and did well for a top club.

41 minutes ago, Sconnie Blue said:

Cheers. Can't believe I forgot the blatant obvious.

I'm not closing the door on Gallardo (he was someone actually I brought up before we signed Maresca), it's just interesting how there are hardly any South American coaches that came to Europe and did well for a top club.

Pellegrini is also a former South American team coach (river plate as well)

The only other "gettable" manager who could hack the level we want to be at is Xavi

Seriously struggling for other names. I dont even know who we'd bring in as an interim. What's the Spanish waiter doing these days?

Maybe Mancini could be a decent shout.

I just feel like we need someone who has taken a team to the top before.

Edited September 29, 2025Sep 29 by bisright1

15 hours ago, nonotnowjim said:

Start listening….

It’s not about the results for me….its about HOW we play.

The manager can set the team up to have a go and attack - with whatever levels of player he has. But Maresca chooses to play slow and negative football.

Even Lincoln played quickly and got at us!

How we play?

Poch played very loose football. We struggle. He can't coach, no tactic, dinosaur. We need manager who understand tactic and who can teach this player tactic.

Maresca played structure ball. We struggle. Maresca problem is his tactic. He shackle his player.

Mou loose ball - conte/sarri structure ball - Laml loose ball - TT structure ball - poch loose ball - Maresca structure ball