The Enzo Maresca exit was met with swift action by Chelsea, with senior figures holding an emergency meeting to stabilize the situation and put the short-term picture in focus. This dialogue was held on Friday morning and covered sporting directors, players, and the caretaking coaching group as the club was off to a challenging task in the Premier League.
The session was conducted with the express aim of clarifying the reasons behind the club and the Italian coach coming to an end, after the relationship had deteriorated in the second half of December. There were sources who had been close to the process, which was meant to provide transparency and reassurance, and not a traditional decision-making board summit.
Maresca has officially resigned on New Year day and Chelsea confirmed the separation on Thursday lunch after an internal dispute. The news led to immediate changes in the operations of the club, such as the appointment of an interim leader in place of the forthcoming away game against Manchester City.
Preparation of the first team was transferred to Calum McFarlane, who was contacted when he was with his family and was asked to report to the training ground at once. Later, McFarlane stated that the order was issued by a sporting director himself and had to be taken immediately because of such a tight deadline.
The caretaker coach has disclosed that the directors put forward a stark message in the meeting, saying, You are going to be ready to play Manchester City on Sunday, we are fully backing you and having confidence in you, and good luck. It was meant as that reassurance that, after the departure of Enzo Maresca, the players would not lose focus on short-term goals.
The order of events cited by McFarlane was a crazy 24 hours, a whirlwind, and he also termed the same experience as an amazing experience due to the circumstances. He has incorporated some of his Under-21 players into the first-team training, and set-piece coach Bernando Cueva is also still with the club since the former regime.
The short-term concern of Chelsea is to prepare to compete in the league game at Etihad Stadium with a minimum amount of interference with the routine activities in the field. Authorities feel that the continuity in the ways of coaching is essential in ensuring that the levels of performance are not harmed in the course of transition.
The club insiders claim that the transparency that was granted to the players was absolutely necessary following the exit of Enzo Maresca, especially with no room to be distracted before a high-profile test. More discussions on the long term managerial framework of Chelsea are likely to be done later, but the priority at the moment is focused on match preparedness and on the unity of the squad.
