Wouldn't have sacked Enzo Maresca as Chelsea coach in January: Marc Cucurella
Marc Cucurella has slammed the decision made by Chelsea to sack Enzo Maresca as their manager in January this year. The Blues decided to part ways with Maresca on New Year’s Day as they felt that a change was needed to get the best out of the team.
Enzo Maresca’s departure came after reports of a breakdown in his relationship with the club’s hierarchy over the past few weeks. The Italian had recently described 48 hours as his “worst” at Chelsea FC, although he chose not to reveal further details behind the remark.
Even so, Maresca’s stint was marked by notable achievements. In his debut season at Stamford Bridge, he led Chelsea to victories in the UEFA Europa Conference League and the FIFA Club World Cup, securing major trophies during a transitional phase for the club.
In an explosive interview with The Athletic, the Spanish defender said that it would have been best to wait till the end of the summer to make a call on changing the manager. Cucurella believes that it would have given the new man enough time to link up with the squad.
“These are decisions taken by the club. If you asked me, I would not have made this decision. To make a change like that, the best thing is to wait until the end of the season,” he said.
“You would give everyone, the players and the new manager, time to get ready, have a full pre-season.”
Maresca was replaced by Liam Rosenoir, who has overseen a poor period for Chelsea as they have slipped up in the race for the Champions League spots and got knocked out of the competition by PSG.
‘CUCURELLA UNHAPPY WITH CHELSEA POLICY’
Chelsea have adopted a youth first poilcy when it comes to transfers and Cucurella feels that has affected the ability of the club when it comes to competing for big honours.
He pointed to the PSG game where he feels Chelsea lacked the experience needed to get over the finish line.
“You are fighting and training every day only to realise, at the very end, that when games matter, we are still a bit away from the top level,” Cucurella told The Athletic in an interview published on Tuesday.
“I understand this is part of the club’s policy, and that they want to take this direction – signing young players and looking to the future.
“But, for all of us who are still here and want to win big things, moments like this make you feel discouraged.”
“Signing young players only might complicate achieving those goals. Against PSG, we lacked players that had gone through situations like that,” he added.
Chelsea are currently sixth in the Premier League points table and have made it to the quarterfinals of the FA Cup.
– Ends
