Trouble brewing at Chelsea as Enzo Maresca has already fallen into the Pochettino trap
If there’s one thing that defines Chelsea’s owners at present it’s their unbelievable lack of patience, and that will have been something that Enzo Maresca was acutely aware of when taking the position of first-team manager.
Thomas Tuchel wasn’t really given the chance to impress under Clearlake Capital before he was replaced by Graham Potter.
Enzo Maresca singing from the Poch playbook
He too barely lasted a few months before Bruno Saltor stepped in for four days and then Frank Lampard was parachuted in as caretaker manager, a move that was destined to end in an abject failure.
Mauricio Pochettino looked to be getting things on the right track at Stamford Bridge before the ‘mutual consent’ line was trotted out to accompany the Argentinian’s exit from the club.
During his season at the helm of the Blues, Poch often spoke about needing time to develop his squad, and for expectations to therefore be kept in check.
?? “I think we need time.”
Mauricio Pochettino says his young side need patience for them to grow together. ? pic.twitter.com/LNhkNiPUXz
— Football Daily (@footballdaily) October 2, 2023
It often felt like he wasn’t singing from the same hymn sheet as the board, with perhaps their largesse in the transfer market giving them licence to expect immediate results on the pitch.
As anyone in football knows, things just don’t work like that and, ultimately, Pochettino wasn’t given the time to bring the success that the club craved.
Maresca has now been handed that particular baton, but he too appears to have slipped into using much the same language as his predecessor, and that can only spell trouble.
? Enzo Maresca: "Since I met for the first time with owners and directors, they never mentioned to me to finish top four".
"We've a very good squad but I also said in the last two years, we finished 12th and sixth. To improve, it is not something automatic. You need progress". pic.twitter.com/NNNZr9oTc6
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) September 21, 2024
“Since I met for the first time with owners and directors, they never mentioned to me to finish top four,” he was quoted as saying by Fabrizio Romano on X (formerly Twitter).
“We’ve a very good squad but I also said in the last two years, we finished 12th and sixth. To improve, it is not something automatic. You need progress.”
Could it be that Maresca has quickly encountered the same problems as Pochettino and is seeking to publicly set the expectation levels?
One can only begin to fathom how well his comments will go down in the Stamford Bridge boardroom…
Top photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images
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