Maresca on Chelsea's 1-0 Leicester win

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Maresca on Chelsea's 1-0 Leicester win  09/03/2025  Stamford Bridge, London, UK

Transcript

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.

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