Vesper

Our new stadium: Biggest circus needs the biggest tent:

I predict they will hire Francesco Farioli

Chelsea part ways with Enzo Maresca with immediate effect https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6933487/2026/01/01/Chelsea-enzo-maresca-leaves/ Chelsea and head coach Enzo Maresca have parted ways with immediate effect less than two years into his contract. The Athletic reported on Thursday that the club’s board were to meet that day to discuss Maresca’s future, with Chelsea winless in their past three games. The Italian had been on a five-year deal through to 2029. A club statement on Thursday confirming his departure read: “Chelsea Football Club and head coach Enzo Maresca have parted company. “During his time at the club, Enzo led the team to success in the UEFA Conference League and the FIFA Club World Cup. Those achievements will remain an important part of the Club’s recent history, and we thank him for his contributions to the club. “With key objectives still to play for across four competitions including qualification for Champions League football, Enzo and the club believe a change gives the team the best chance of getting the season back on track. “We wish Enzo well for the future.” Maresca was the Premier League’s manager of the month in November but sparked uncertainty over his future with comments following their win against Everton on December 13 that the previous 48 hours had been his “worst since I joined the club, because many people didn’t support us”. The Athletic revealed days after the comments that the head coach is high among the candidates Manchester City are considering in the event of Pep Guardiola leaving the Etihad Stadium next summer. The Catalan is under contract until 2027 with City clear they have no managerial vacancy. Sources briefed on the matter not authorised to speak publicly indicate Maresca informed Chelsea — twice in late October and again in mid-December — that he was talking to people associated to City about his candidacy for the managerial position if and when a future vacancy arises. This was something he was contractually obliged to do in relation to talks with any other club. The two teams meet each other in the Premier League at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday and it remains to be seen who will be in charge for Chelsea following Maresca’s departure. What You Should Read Next Chelsea’s Enzo Maresca high on Manchester City’s list in event of Pep Guardiola exit City are advancing contingency planning as there is a growing anticipation of this being the Catalan manager's last season. Liam Rosenior, who has impressed at fellow BlueCo club Strasbourg, is expected to be among the candidates considered as a successor but Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner is not in the frame. The situation has come to a head following Tuesday evening’s draw with Bournemouth, a third game without a win and one which saw Maresca and his side booed off at full-time at Stamford Bridge. The club remain firmly behind the approach installed following the takeover by the Clearlake Capital-Todd Boehly consortium in 2022 with the next head coach expected to fit into it and quickly stabilise and improve results. Maresca was appointed by Chelsea in June 2024, the sixth manager since Roman Abramovich’s exit. He joined the London club off the back of guiding Leicester City to the Championship title and automatic promotion to the top flight at the first attempt. In his first season at Stamford Bridge, Maresca won the Conference League and the newly-expanded Club World Cup. Chelsea sit fifth in the Premier League, 15 points behind leaders Arsenal and only five points above 14th-placed Brighton & Hove Albion. What You Should Read Next Enzo Maresca leaves Chelsea: The only possible outcome for an increasingly unhappy marriage? Three weeks after being named Premier League Manager of the Month, Maresca is gone, but the cracks have been visible for longer ‘The speed of Maresca’s departure is shocking’ Analysis by Chelsea correspondent Simon Johnson Even by Chelsea’s standards, this is extraordinary. On December 12, Enzo Maresca was named Barclays Manager of the Month for November. Three weeks later, he is gone. The speed of Maresca’s departure at Stamford Bridge is pretty shocking. It was only in late November that Maresca engineered one of the most impressive wins of his tenure — a 3-0 victory over Barcelona in the Champions League. Five days later and Chelsea sent out a statement that they might be title contenders by securing a 1-1 draw with Arsenal, despite being down to 10 men for nearly an hour due to Moises Caicedo’s first-half red card. They were third in the Premier League, just six points behind their London rivals. Now they are a further nine points off the league leaders and making another change in the dugout. This is a situation that was not in Chelsea’s plans and could have major ramifications for their season. This month alone, they have nine games in all four competitions, and confidence is already low after a run of two wins from their previous nine fixtures. Chelsea had always intended to review how the club was progressing, including Maresca’s performance, at the end of the season, his second in charge. This was still the case earlier this week. For the Italian to go with so much left to play for emphasises the extent to which things have broken down. By David Ornstein and Simon Johnson

Glasner out of the running per Ornstein

we are truly BlueCo Clown Car FC

it is official Maresca is gone Chelsea Football Club and Head Coach Enzo Maresca have parted company. https://www.chelseafc.com/en/news/article/club-statement-enzo-maresca During his time at the Club, Enzo led the team to success in the UEFA Conference League and the FIFA Club World Cup. Those achievements will remain an important part of the Club’s recent history, and we thank him for his contributions to the Club. With key objectives still to play for across four competitions including qualification for Champions League football, Enzo and the Club believe a change gives the team the best chance of getting the season back on track. We wish Enzo well for the future.

IF the board hires a really bad choice as the new manager we well could see the end of any major chance for winning the league and other big trophies for perhaps a decade or so if the new manager is absolute shite, all our biggest players will demand to leave, maybe even Reece also, we still have no shirt sponsor (major loss of revenue for years now) and the stadium issue looks to not be fully done and resolved until the mid to late 2030s or even later (massive loss of revenue)

Klopp (number 1 choice, but hard as fuck pull) Zidane (number 2 choice but just as hard a pull as Klopp) Xavi Simone Inzaghi Unai Emery (would likely not leave Villa until summer) wild card/dice roll: Cesc and 2 who I would deffo be happy with IF either are sacked by Real and/or Barca and we hired them (Xabi Alonso and Hansi Flick)

Chelsea Could Now Appoint Shock Manager With Enzo Maresca Expected to Leave Today https://www.givemesport.com/Chelsea-could-now-appoint-shock-manager-with-enzo-maresca-expected-to-leave-club-today/ Enzo Maresca is ‘highly likely’ to leave Chelsea on Thursday (January 1) after a ‘complete breakdown in his relationship with the club’. This is according to a shock report from The Guardian, who understand that emergency talks are being held over the Italian manager’s position at Stamford Bridge. Maresca is no longer expected to be in charge for Chelsea’s upcoming Premier League clash against Manchester City on Sunday. Sources have indicated to The Guardian that Maresca wants to leave the Blues, although it’s unclear if he is willing to walk away without a payoff. Chelsea currently sit fifth in the Premier League table, 15 points behind leaders Arsenal, but December’s results have put Maresca under increased pressure. The west London outfit have won just one of the previous seven league matches. Maresca, 45, was appointed by Chelsea in June 2024, replacing Mauricio Pochettino at Stamford Bridge. The former Italy Under-21 international, who played for the likes of West Brom, Juventus, Fiorentina and Sevilla during his playing career got the Chelsea job after guiding Leicester City to the Championship title. While Maresca has enjoyed success at Chelsea - winning the UEFA Conference League and FIFA Club World Cup titles - it appears the breakdown in relations between him and the club’s hierarchy will lead to his imminent departure. Early Contenders to Replace Maresca at Chelsea It’s currently unclear who will replace Maresca if the Italian does leave, although The Guardian say that ‘one solution’ would be to appoint Liam Rosenior - the current Strasbourg head coach. The 41-year-old Englishman, who spent most of his professional playing career with Hull City before managing the Tigers between 2022-2024, may jump at the opportunity to coach one of the Premier League’s biggest clubs. Rosenior has impressed at Strasbourg, who are Chelsea’s partner club, although his potential appointment will depend on whether his current employers are able to find a quality replacement now. Other names that currently among the bookmakers’ favourites include Como boss Cesc Fabregas, Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner and Barcelona legend Xavi Hernandez. In any case, it feels increasingly likely that Chelsea will now be on the hunt for their fifth permanent manager since Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital completed their takeover of the club in 2022.

Who are your choices to replace him?

Every word Willy Caballero said What did you make of that display? You’ve dropped more points from a winning position. What were you pushing for at the end? Well, as I said previously, it’s a difficult start but we have to deal with that now, we have to improve that and we go the next couple of games and also the whole second half to improve that. In another view, it means that we are creating, we are scoring goals and we are opening the scoring sometimes, which is good, but we need to manage and find a way to win those points, kill those games because they are the games that we are going to need to achieve our target. It’s not one thing that’s the problem, it’s kind of in some games it’s maybe not taking the chances, in other games maybe defensive mistakes, is it? Yeah, it’s part of it, it’s what happens in any single game. Sometimes it’s details, sometimes it’s because the opponent finds a way to break through or to create those chances, but we need to create that kind of, not create, we need to find that kind of mentality to not let them find a way to make us lose those kind of games because we invest a lot. Today it was a really good game in terms of playing, how we played, how we went to the other box. We created many chances and unfortunately we are talking more about that stats than how players like Estevao [played], like Cole [played] so it’s like that. Could you just clarify what’s happened to Enzo Maresca? Yes, he didn’t feel well the last two days, he had a bit of a temperature two days ago, he did the last two sessions because he wanted to prepare well the team for this game, but after the game he went to the changing room and he asked me to replace him because he didn’t feel well and that’s the only thing I can tell you guys. The decision to take Palmer off was booed. Do supporters need to show more faith in the manager? Of course any supporter wants to have their best players on the pitch and we want to have the best players on the pitch as well, but Cole is coming from a long injury so in this case we need to find the right substitutions to go for the game and also to take care of the health of our players because we want to have them for the long period and for the rest of the season in every single game. Moises Caicedo is now suspended for the Manchester City trip, how frustrated are you with that suspension? Very frustrated because it was the first foul on the game and it was close to us, and we looked at the foul more than once and it doesn’t look like a yellow. But it’s done now so we’re going to miss a very important player but we need to, from now on, start to think who will be the player that replaces Moi and of course it’s a big loss but same as when we miss Cole, when we miss Liam [Delap], when we miss any player because all of them are very important for us. Will you be in charge for the Manchester City game or are you expecting Enzo to be back? I don’t know, I just want to wish for the recovery of Enzo and I believe in one or two days he will be okay. You’re obviously very close with Enzo, how is he handling this difficult run and secondly, in January there are nine games, four competitions, do you guys have to see this as an opportunity to turn it around? Yes of course, first of all he’s dealing well because he’s very professional, he invests a lot of hours every single day even though the last two days he was feeling bad. He is an example for me, for all of the staff and yes we got the same amount of number of games in December and we didn’t do it as we expected so we go now January to start the year for us as a target to improve and to start to find the points that can make us achieve our targets. You’ve conceded four goals now from long throws this season which is the joint worst in the league, why do you think it’s become such an issue this season? It’s such an issue because now every single game and every other team has got not just one, sometimes two or three players that can deliver a very long throw. It means that all of the other teams invest a lot in long throws and they create many set pieces about that and it just gives us information that we have to deal quickly because we need to improve in any set pieces. We are unlucky to have [conceded] these four goals [from long throws], probably the day of the Brentford it hurts a lot because it was in the last second and we could have two more points. Today, two in the same way it hurts so we need to correct that and we need to improve because there are many things that happen there. Sometimes it’s how they move, how they go for the first contact but even though the second goal today was a deflection from our own players so there are many details that sometimes are very difficult to deal with in that scenario.

we had 4 massive, clear weaknesses only GKer has sort of been fixed a bit, and that is NOT due to a new buy, it is only due to Sanchez finally becoming somewhat acceptable the other 3 CF CB LW we are just rat-fucked at plus glassman Lavia has destroyed our class MF depth

Sources: Enzo Maresca under IMMENSE pressure Also in here - Clearlake vs Todd, What new manager would replace Maresca? Would fan protests help? https://siphillipstalkschelsea.substack.com/p/sources-enzo-maresca-under-immense I’ve been asked about this of course off the back of Chelsea’s awful recent form. I’ve always been told and heard that Chelsea want to avoid a mid-season change of manager, and that is still the case. That is what they ideally want to do. They want to review Enzo Maresca, as well as the sporting directors, in the summer, and then make any big changes or decisions. However, I’ve heard about Maresca now being under IMMENSE pressure from the Chelsea board following our form throughout December, having only won one game out of our last seven league games. It’s been deemed far from good enough, and Chelsea are having a serious look at Maresca. This isn’t just from poor results and form. The way Maresca has been acting and his comments in public has caused some puzzled and annoyed reactions from those at the very top of the club. And when they are already seeing Maresca as a manager under pressure, this has only added fuel to the fire. There are real issues between some on the board, and Maresca. There is a belief that the Italian coach has eyes on another role in the summer, and that is distracting him. My top SPTC Source told me that Maresca was ‘on thin ice’ before the Bournemouth game and it would be worse if he didn’t win it. At this moment, we don’t know what a draw means in the grand scheme of that, but at this point in time (Wednesday 7am), we haven’t yet heard that they are about to pull the tigger, just that the pressure has mounted up massively on Maresca. Having said that, it’s my personal feeling that I’d not be at all surprised if we see a ‘club statement’ post from Chelsea some time very soon. Clearlake and Todd So, how is the relationship here? Well, Behdad Eghbali is the man in charge, he is the one calling all the shots. Todd Boehly has become a bit of a silent partner and is rarely involved. Both sides of the ownership would love to buy the other out, but neither want to sell. They both have completely different ideas on how the club should be run, what to do with the stadium, and FOS sponsors. One SPTC Source has told me that they are playing a game of tug of war, pulling in the opposite directions, but neither side is currently falling over. I have no idea how it ends or how/if it gets sorted out, but right now, Behdad is fully invested in what he is doing and is fully behind his project and still has real belief in it. Behdad and his sporting team are at every game they can get to and they go to the dressing room to debrief after those games. The Chelsea owner has become very hands on and proactive, and he has no desire to move away from what he is doing at the club. New manager IF, and it’s still an if at this point, Maresca is sacked, or if he walks, now or in the summer, don’t expect any new manager in who currently plays transitional or pragmatic football. Chelsea have a club-wide ideology to play possession-based football only. So they would only look for that kind of manager. I also wouldn’t expect any big personalities to come in, because the head coach gets very little say in operations. If Maresca goes, I can only see Liam Rosenior ‘getting promoted’ from Strasbourg. I genuinely see that happening. I don’t think we would see an Andoni Iraola or even an Oliver Glasner come in. They already have Rosenior lined up for when needed. Chelsea have a rotation policy across the club, and they have a style of football that they want to continue playing and a specific-type of manager in mind to keep it implemented. It’s all in the plans from Behdad, and it’s the way they see it as taking the club forward. Would protests help? Nope. Doubt it. They are very much in their vision and very much backing it and wanting to see it through. They aren’t about to change what they are doing because fans protest about it. Maybe sustained protests might eventually have some sort of effect. But from everything I’ve seen and heard, this is their way of doing things, they have belief in it, and it’s that way or the highway.

"Step up, take accountability for the shit you’ve put us in" Carefree Youth is not happy https://siphillipstalkschelsea.substack.com/p/step-up-take-accountability-for-the I’ve hauled out a couple posts I’ve seen this week from Chelsea fans. I have another article out on a post on the Nicolas Jackson revisionism, and now it’s time to take a look at a post on the current situation at our club. It’s from a chap called Scott, who runs the CarefreeYouth account on X. He’s also a friend of mine and we have spoken quite a bit over time. He says: “After the last few years I’m used to Chelsea disappointing results. I usually snap out of it a day later. “I’m still honestly so annoyed with things. Nothing from the club. They are very open in talking to journalists when it’s about transfers. “Step up, take accountability for the shit you’ve put us in. Watch and wait till hit a tiny bit of good form then they’ll be out talking that this is a project and they are happy with the squad as a whole. “Seen a lot of fans discussing Maresca job. He’s not blameless in all this but no one is coming here to be a yes man that will fix this fully. ”We will be back here in 12/18 months moaning about it all again. Things need to change above. Simple. “We have made countless mistakes. A few talents won’t hide all the cracks forever cause we say “it’s a long-term project”. “They told us that we could judge the squad build after the summer 2024 transfer window. 18 months on and we still have to sit and accept anything that comes our way and not ask questions as fans. “Chelsea spent around £150m on these seven players: Slonina, Disasi, Wiley, Sterling, Kellyman, Datro Fofana, Washington “How much will we make on them if and when sold?” I haven’t seen Scott rant like this in a while. There’s a really toxic feel around our club right now and I don’t even think a good run of results will turn it because it will be a case of ‘been there and seen that recently, yet still soon returned here again’. There’s been far too much money dumped into this project for it to only be as far along as it is right now. It’s so far been a failure, no two ways about it.

Liverpool warned of HUGE wages, signing-on fee Marc Guehi could demand as transfer race sees pair drop out https://www.teamtalk.com/liverpool/marc-guehi-transfer-huge-wages-signing-on-fee-demands-barcelona-real-madrid-liverpool Liverpool have been warned that delaying the signing of Marc Guehi to the end of the season could ultimately hit them harder in the pocket than ever expected, amid claims the Crystal Palace star’s sky-high demands have seen two major suitors drop from the running and with one top journalist now naming the club the defender is expected to join. The England defender came within a whisker of joining Liverpool on transfer deadline day back in the summer, only for Crystal Palace to pull the plug on the £35m sale after failing to sign his replacement in defence. Having returned to Selhurst Park, Guehi has shown zero signs of being affected by that transfer breaking down, having continued to put up one dominant display after another in the heart of the Eagles’ defence. But with the 25-year-old making clear he won’t be signing an extension to his contract, the player is poised to become one of the most in-demand free agents of all time this summer, with sources revealing no fewer than 13 sides have already contacted his representatives over a summer transfer. Free to sign a pre-contract agreement with interested overseas sides from this Thursday, January 1, we understand Guehi has made it clear that he intends to see out the season at Selhurst Park before making any firm decision on his future. That stance seriously increases Liverpool’s confidence in striking a fresh deal themselves for the 26-times capped England star. However, former Man Utd goalkeeper Ben Foster, speaking on his Fozcast podcast, has revealed the jaw-dropping costs likely to be involved in signing Guehi on ‘a free’. “Marc Guehi could go to anybody in the wo‎rld. If he lets his contract run down to the summer, he can sign for whoever he wants,” Foster said. “At that point there he gets to say, ‘I want £250,000 a week’ or ‘I want £300,000,’ because if he gets four, five or six teams sniffing at him and wanting him, he’ll get it as well. The amount of money this guy’s about to earn is honestly outrageous. “With the signing-on fee, you haven’t got to pay £40m or £50m for a player like Marc Guehi; instead of that, you can say, ‘Give me a signing-on fee of £30m and we’ll call it quits.’ It’s crazy money.” Top journalist names Guehi preference as two sides drop from race Despite the enormous salary demands Guehi will seemingly demand, it potentially closes the door on the number of clubs that can viably match his terms. In light of all that, Sky Sports’ journalist Sacha Tavolieri has revealed that Liverpool are ‘leading the race’ for Guehi and remain the club he will most likely sign for. At the same time, Tavolieri has suggested the name of Barcelona off the list, because the Spanish giants are unable to match personal terms to the defender offered elsewhere. Taking to X, Tavolieri stated: “FC Barcelona close to ruling out Marc Guehi! “The English defender wants to decide his future soon, and Barca’s offer would be lower than those from English clubs. Liverpool still leading the race for Guehi. Wait and see.” Tavolieri’s claims follow suggestions last week from his colleague, Karveh Solhekol, that Guehi has a ‘gentleman’s agreement’ to join the Reds – a claim since fiercely denied by our sources who have provided an insight into the defender’s transfer stance. As a result, sources do not expect Guehi to reach a quick decision on his future, instead preferring to wait until the back end of the season to decide his next move. That is a verdict echoed by the BBC’s chief football reporter, Sami Mokbel, who stated last weekend: “My understanding at the moment is he probably and is expected to stay at Palace until the end of the season when his contract expires. “Look, he’s got so many options in the summer. You’ve got Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid, Inter Milan… all these clubs have registered varying degrees of interest in Guehi in recent weeks. “When you come to the end of the season, you’ll have Liverpool back in the mix, Manchester City back in the mix. “So he is leaving, he’s going, but I expect that situation to continue until the summer when he’ll have his pick of the clubs.” Mokbel added: “He’s delivered week in, week out, and the way he’s reacted to that Liverpool move falling through has seen several clubs come to the fore. “That’s the kind of personality and character people want at their club. He’s done himself a brilliant service to himself this season. “He wanted to join Liverpool, let’s make no bones about it, but he’s put that behind him and had a brilliant season so far.” Of the clubs mentioned, Real Madrid are perhaps the most attractive option, though ESPN Deportes last week ruled Los Blancos out of the chase, removing another sizeable object from Liverpool’s path.

I am losing interest in the team BlueCo is sapping my energy scumfuckers

he also looks exhausted

we are tumbling down the table at this rate no CL

booooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Palmer coming off Pedro on

we cocked that counter up

Neto on as well

we are a joke on corners