Maresca on Chelsea's 1-0 Leicester win
09/03/2025
Stamford Bridge, London, UK
09/03/2025
Stamford Bridge, London, UK
Category
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SportsTranscript
00:00Okay, who wants to get us underway?
00:23N'Zo?
00:24N'Zo, you looked like you enjoyed having the final whistle.
00:26I saw you were shouting, what was the feeling after the final whistle?
00:29Yeah, very happy, very happy.
00:31The main reason is because when we prepare a game,
00:37we watch as many games as possible.
00:40So we watched Leicester's game and the route,
00:43almost all the games since he arrived,
00:45and you can imagine how many games.
00:47And they play always line of four.
00:50So they arrive here, line of five.
00:52And they change completely the plan.
00:54So all the training sessions that you have done and prepared the game,
00:58they go rubbish.
01:02So you need a new plan.
01:04So before the warm-up, before the players go out,
01:07we need to give them a new plan.
01:09This is the reason why I was so happy,
01:11because the way the players adapt,
01:13that is something that from the outside you struggle probably to see or to understand,
01:17has been top, fantastic.
01:19So you have to change completely the plan,
01:21the way you want to attack and the way you want to defend.
01:24Leicester come here, line of five.
01:28This is something also I said to the players.
01:31In one side, it's also something that probably the other team,
01:34they start to respect us.
01:36Copenhagen, three years with the same manager,
01:39two games in three years with the line of five.
01:41We play there, line of five.
01:43So the players, they have been so good this season
01:46in the way they are adapting, fantastic.
01:48And the reason why I was so happy,
01:50I'm really sorry for Leicester,
01:53because I will be always thankful to them.
01:55But the reason why is for this,
01:57because they come here thinking that they can surprise us,
02:01but the players, they adapt fantastic,
02:03and this is the reason why I was so happy.
02:07I don't watch warm-up,
02:08and the reason why is because sometimes they do warm-up with line of four
02:11and then they are line of five.
02:13My granddad did exactly the same.
02:16They do warm-up with line of five and they play line of four.
02:19So I don't watch the warm-up.
02:20Sometimes I go out, sometimes I go inside.
02:22I don't watch the warm-up.
02:24But when you see the first eleven, you can realise sometimes,
02:27and you can see that they were line of five.
02:29And the players, they have been so good,
02:31because before the warm-up, again, guys,
02:33everything we have done in these last two, three days,
02:36forget about this.
02:37We have a new plan.
02:39New plan, so you have to adapt.
02:41And they have done fantastic.
02:43Jacob.
02:45Before the goal, there seems to be a bit of grumbling from the fans.
02:49Your reaction when the goal went in seems to be calling for more positivity.
02:54What was your general feeling about that?
02:56No, it's very easy.
02:57This guy was with me all season last year at Leicester.
03:00Happiness are the same.
03:02The people, they have to understand that this is our way,
03:05our style, and this is the way we're going to play.
03:07When a team creates the amount of chances we create today,
03:10you have to be happy.
03:12It's not easy.
03:13Leicester, until minute 83, they were nil-nil against Arsenal.
03:18The same thing happened against City.
03:20If you think that football is just a PlayStation and you win easy,
03:23no way.
03:24Every game is difficult.
03:25And the way the play they have done today, fantastic.
03:28We need our fans.
03:29I said, you know, in my Instagram, I said two days ago,
03:34our Champions League target will be also with our fans supporting us.
03:40And especially when we play at home, we need them behind the players
03:44because the spirit they showed today has been top.
03:47There was some booing, I think, when Fernandes played a back pass.
03:50Is that unhelpful for the players to hear that?
03:52Is that potentially going to affect them?
03:54Yeah, but the good thing is that Fernandes knows
03:57that if he doesn't play back, I will change him.
04:01If the keeper plays long, I will change him.
04:03This is what we have.
04:24It's very easy.
04:25Cole yesterday didn't train.
04:27During the night, he didn't feel well.
04:30And the reason why he didn't train yesterday is because he didn't feel well.
04:33So this morning he woke up and he asked me,
04:36I want to be on the pitch because I want to help this team,
04:38this club to play Champions League.
04:40So in the last two days, he was completely out.
04:43Fever.
04:44I don't know if it's something I can say in English.
04:47Diarrhea.
04:48Yes.
04:49Can I say that?
04:50Yeah.
04:51Yeah, exactly.
04:52Yeah, exactly.
04:53So in the last 48 hours, he didn't train and he was very bad,
04:57with the fever and this kind of bad feeling.
05:00But this morning he asked to play the game
05:02and this shows how this player wants to bring this club
05:05where this club belongs to.
05:06Is that why he went straight down the tunnel?
05:08Did he need to maybe...?
05:10Yeah, and then he was back.
05:12Liam.
05:14Hi, Enzo.
05:15Can you take us through a couple of things that you changed about the plan
05:18once you realised who the rest of them had set up?
05:21We saw Marco Correia overlapping today.
05:23Yeah, yeah.
05:24The plan was Marco Correia next to Moi Caicedo as a midfielder
05:29with three and two.
05:31Three at the back with Correia next to Moi.
05:34But when we see them defending with five, we need to attack with six.
05:38So Correia was higher.
05:40Cristian Kunck in the pocket.
05:42Cole, Pedro, Enzo and the other side, Jadon.
05:45So we tried to attack with six.
05:47The pressing was completely different because you need to change the pressing.
05:50And the way the players adapt has been top.
05:54And as I said, sometimes they think to come here and surprise us,
05:58like it happened already in Copenhagen now,
06:01but it already happened a few times this season.
06:03And they have been so good for that.
06:06Malek.
06:09With Marc, he's popped up with a few goals recently.
06:12When you lost Jackson, you said you needed to share the goals around.
06:16I'm not sure you expected it to be him, but where does that come from?
06:19Yeah, but Marc scored already when Nico was there.
06:23Marc has something that is not difficult to find.
06:28But he's clever, he's intelligent.
06:30He scored two goals with that against Wolves at Brentford.
06:33And he's probably the smallest one in the team.
06:35And this shows you how intelligent he is because he's in the right position.
06:41And he's playing like attacking midfielder.
06:43And he's doing fantastic. He scored four or five goals with us.
06:47You also have to realise we are playing without a nine.
06:50Nicolás and Marc, both in deadline injury.
06:54Pedro is doing fantastic. He was running everywhere today.
06:57So this spirit is what we need and what we all need to be aware of.
07:03Fans, you, us, that is what we need.
07:06Matt.
07:17You were winning at Villa, but the Villa fans are still very loud.
07:21The Newcastle fans are very loud.
07:23Copenhagen.
07:24Copenhagen.
07:25Yeah, in general. For sure.
07:28But in the moment that we can hear our fans, it's so nice, so good.
07:34Your fans are very loud, aren't they?
07:36Yeah, but even at home sometimes.
07:39I completely understand when there is some negative feeling.
07:45But today, how many chances did we create in the first half?
07:49The penalty and more chances.
07:51Second half, exactly the same.
07:52And the players, they were giving everything.
07:54But as I said, it's normal because they don't see in behind.
07:58On the way back to Copenhagen, two o'clock in the morning,
08:02the staff, we were watching Leicester game with the line-of-four.
08:08We prepared a session with the line-of-four.
08:10And then suddenly the line-of-four.
08:12So the players, you need to change that.
08:14I can understand that from outside, you struggle to see that.
08:17But it's difficult.
08:18So we changed the plan and they are that fantastic.
08:20But for sure, as I said already, with our fans in behind, we feel so good.
08:25With a run-in and with fatigue coming in and things like that,
08:28you're going to need a 12th man for the rest of the season.
08:31Exactly. Yeah, absolutely.
08:33And it's so good feeling.
08:34It's so nice feeling when we can feel the fans in behind.
08:38But it's something that the players, they mention after the game.
08:41Oh, did you hear the fans? How good between them?
08:43It's so good.
08:44So we need the fans, we need the fans, we need the fans.
08:47Two more questions, second row and then Jordan.
09:00Yeah, no, the idea is not to change keep every game.
09:04But we changed in the past because I was thinking to give Robert some rest.
09:10Today Robert did well.
09:11The last game at home, the Premier League game,
09:13we won and we were clean sheet with Philippe Jorgensen.
09:17Today I played the same with Robert and Robert did well.
09:20So it's just now we have a game on Thursday.
09:23That is an important game.
09:25And we'll see.
09:27Jordan.
09:39Jordan, I met the best people in my life in terms of football in Leicester.
09:44The owner and the sport director.
09:46So I hope for Leicester that they're going to be Premier League club.
09:49I'm surprised it's not my job.
09:51I'm not there, so I don't know.
09:53I'm thinking, I'm focused, I'm just about Chelsea.
09:56I really feel sorry in case they are not Premier League club
09:59because the people, they are very good people,
10:02care about you, care about the family, care about the kids.
10:05So it's so difficult to find these kind of people in football.
10:09So I hope for them, for you, to stay in the Premier League.
10:12Thanks, guys.
10:14Cheers.