Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca previews their Premier League clash with Bournemouth and speaks on the ownership situation at the club
Cobham, London, UK
Cobham, London, UK
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00:00The usual format of a broadcast section and then a newspaper section and do we
00:07want to begin with Soraya, PLP?
00:09Hello, good afternoon. You're a very adaptable manager, you have a rotational system so players can play in different places.
00:17We've seen Enzo play as a deep line playmaker as a 6 and be excellent, we've seen him be box to box as an 8.
00:24Where do you see him playing best under you?
00:28I think it's very, very difficult in the way we play to find a midfielder that he can attack
00:38like attacking midfielder and he can defend like holding midfielder. For instance,
00:44Arsenal is using Declan Rice that is playing on the ball attacking midfielder
00:49and defend as holding midfielder. City in the past they have done with Gundogan that is
00:56attacking midfielder and defending like holding midfielder. In our case we are trying to find
01:03the balance and to find the players that they can give us this kind of solution and at the moment
01:08Enzo is the only one that when we have the ball is playing like attacking midfielder and off the
01:16ball when we don't have the ball is dropping next to Moi and to try to help us and give us defensive balance.
01:23The first game for instance we use Romeo and Moi as holding midfielder.
01:32Enzo is in this moment playing on the ball as attacking midfielder, off the ball as
01:37holding midfielder, defensive midfielder and he's doing very, very good with us so the idea is to continue on that.
01:44Another talented midfielder you have Kani, so he was included in your Conference League squad,
01:49he was in pre-season. What does his future look like under you and what role do you see him in midfield?
01:55I said already to him personally and I said already to you in the press conference I really,
02:00really like Kani. The problem is that we have so many attacking midfielder that he's going to
02:06struggle to find space and for me because of his past in terms of injury the best thing to do was
02:12to go in some team and to prove himself that he's fit and he can play 30-35 games
02:19and then come back here. Unfortunately we didn't find any solution so now he's one of the players
02:24of our squad and we can use him.
02:27And you have a lot of attacking options, a lot of players have flared up the 14-0 window.
02:33We know Jadon Sancho is excellent 1v1, great game-making, great ball carrier.
02:38How do you see him being utilised in this squad with all these options, more off the bench?
02:44No, no, I said many times I decide the first 11 depends on the training session,
02:52so Jadon is one of our wingers. I expect him, I'm seeing him exactly in the way I expect him,
03:02very good player in the last third, as you said 1v1 quality in the last third,
03:06so he's exactly the player we were looking at but now it's a matter to find the right moment
03:12for him, to give him a chance and that's it.
03:17How far off are Jadon Sancho and Jadon James from returning to the bench?
03:22Yeah, Romelu looks very close, hopefully for the next game, unfortunately he needs more time.
03:32Can I ask you that ownership question?
03:34Obviously, it's been well done.
03:36After three or four questions, it's good progress, I expect it.
03:42What have you made of Jadon?
03:43No, I said many times and also with you, we just started two months ago,
03:51so we need to know a little bit each other, but I try always to be as honest as possible
03:57and if I spend my energy about something different, I think it's not worth it.
04:07So my focus is just about tomorrow's game, to be honest.
04:10And in the last game, in the last week, I try to do exactly the same,
04:14focus in the way we want to prepare the game, in the best way,
04:18so then the other things, they are things that I cannot control.
04:23So you haven't spoken to either of them at all about it?
04:27No, I spoke with Todd, I think, when we played City, probably, that more or less,
04:35and I spoke with Bedard days ago, so I'm speaking with both, there is not any problem at all.
04:41And as I said, my focus is just about the pitch because it's the only thing I can control.
04:47I think it's the first time you've spoken since the transfer window closed,
04:50so are you happy with the squad you've now got, with the players who've come in
04:54and also the players that have left, because we spoke a lot about trying to get rid of the players?
04:59Yeah, I said probably after the Palace game that I feel very lucky because we have many players
05:05that they can play in different positions, they are versatile, that is something that I really like.
05:10And I think all the targets that we were looking at, they are all here,
05:18probably in terms of some players that we were looking at and then they don't arrive,
05:23it's because we want players, but we want players in our condition, not in their condition,
05:30so when both we find a solution, it's good, otherwise they don't arrive.
05:35Ben Chilcott is still here, so what is the situation with him?
05:39Yeah, Ben now is probably the only one that is still here,
05:43so probably now we're going to sit with him and we're going to find a solution,
05:46because he's the only one, so we see probably he's going to be back with us on training session,
05:54we see, because at the moment he's not training with us,
05:57but from now on probably we need to sit with him and to find the right solution and we see.
06:02So there is a way back then, is that he could rejoin the group and he could still play for Chelsea?
06:10The reason why he's training apart is because the idea was for him to leave,
06:17but because we didn't find any solution, he's here and probably he's going to start to train with us,
06:23we need to decide that, probably it could be, and in the moment that if we decide that,
06:28we'll be one of the players.
06:30What frame of mind is he in at the moment?
06:37What frame of mind? How is he?
06:40I think he's good, to be honest. As I said, he's not training with us,
06:45but I can see him, I saw him this morning and he's OK.
06:51Roman?
06:52Hi, just a quick one. How is Malo Gusto doing? Is he all right? Is he ready for tomorrow?
07:00No, Malo is still out, he's not available for tomorrow game.
07:04Just a follow-up. Against Wolves, Chelsea didn't defend a set-piece well,
07:10especially for the last goal against Palace.
07:14Again, it was a set-piece, and then it wasn't defended well, and then there's a score.
07:21Chelsea paid a lot of money for a set-piece goal. Has he started working?
07:25Yeah, absolutely, but we also score from set-pieces,
07:29so you don't have to just watch the goal we concede.
07:32Also, because from now to the end, we are going to concede goal in set-pieces,
07:37and we are going to score set-pieces.
07:39And it's not because it's working well or working bad, it's because it's where it is.
07:43In football, you are going to concede goal in set-pieces,
07:46even if you have the best set-pieces in the world.
07:50Got time for three more. Simon, Davide and Ruben.
07:54I appreciate you don't have to talk too much about the ownership situation,
07:58but how important is it that it's not a negative distraction on the squad?
08:07No, I think the players are professional enough to understand that these kind of things,
08:14they are things that we cannot do nothing, we cannot control.
08:20So the main focus for me is exactly the main focus for the players, that is the pitch,
08:25the way we need to do the things, to improve things.
08:31I think this is the main target for them, for me and for all of us,
08:38that we cannot control that kind of situation.
08:41And do you hope whatever happens, it resolves sooner rather than later,
08:45that it doesn't continue to back off throughout the season?
08:50I don't know if something is going to happen, to be honest.
08:56I don't have an idea.
08:57The only thing I can say is that in terms of football side, we are in the right direction.
09:06I think the team is improving, analysing.
09:09I also used the international break to review the games and these kind of things.
09:13I think the three Premier League games that we played, it's true that we conceded goals,
09:19but it's also true that we conceded the first shot on goal against Palace, that was the goal.
09:26Against City, we didn't concede so many chances.
09:29That is very strange, don't concede chances against City.
09:32Wolves, second half, we don't concede any shots.
09:35So I think we are in the right direction.
09:40And this is for me the most important thing and the thing that I can control.
09:44Going back to how you were trying to make this for the Eurosport,
09:49how are you working and what are you working on?
09:56For instance, we used this international break to try something new for the future
10:00that probably we can use.
10:02And also we tried to find, as I mentioned at the beginning,
10:05some defensive work to find some balance.
10:09That means that we are not defending well, because in my personal opinion,
10:15analysing the game, as I said, the three games,
10:18the first game against City, we didn't concede too much.
10:22The second game, unless the last 20 minutes of the first half, we didn't concede nothing.
10:27And the last game against Palace, that I think was quite clear that
10:32we completely deserved to win the game.
10:35So I try to focus on these kinds of things and the main target is always
10:39how we can improve players, because I said always that improving players,
10:44probably you are going to improve the team.
10:46You probably had an idea of how you want your team to play from the beginning,
10:50but now the transfer market is closed, even though the players you are managing,
10:54how happy are you with the size of your squad and the players you have?
10:58In this moment we have 24 players, that is quite a normal squad.
11:05I said many times that even at the beginning I was working with 25, 26,
11:10never with 40 players.
11:12So in terms of squad, I already said many times that I really like Chelsea's squad already,
11:20before I joined the club.
11:21Then in the moment that I joined the club, we did some things
11:24and I think doing something more in January and something more next summer,
11:30we are going to have exactly the squad that we are looking to have in the future.
11:36Last question.
11:38Nicholas Jackson signed a two-year extension.
11:41How happy are you with this and how good can he be?
11:44Very happy, first of all, because I think he is doing very well.
11:49Since I joined the club with us, he is working hard on the ball and off the ball
11:54and this kind of player that I said already many times, he is going to score goals always.
12:01And with us in the first three Premier League games,
12:04he already gave some assists, he scored goals.
12:07So very happy for Nico and also for us.
12:09The size of the teams in Arsenal, Manchester City, they are quite big, the players.
12:14Is this something that you think is important to build here?
12:17And particularly in the midfield, do you have that physical presence?
12:20Big in terms of physicality?
12:22Yeah, for sure.
12:23Today, if you want to compete, you have to try to find the right balance between
12:27a technical side and a physical side.
12:30I think, as you said, these two clubs, City and Arsenal, but also Liverpool,
12:37they are that kind of players that are physically strong.
12:42But I think we are there too.