Maresca: Nkunku & Jiwuke plays in the forest Enzo is one of the leaders and will stay in the team next season

May 23rd News 23:00 on May 25, in the 38th round of the 2024-25 Premier League, Chelsea will play away against Nottingham Forest, which is a direct dialogue between the UEFA Champions League qualified competitors. Before the game, Blues coach Maresca attended the press conference and talked about some of the current situation of the team.

Regarding Odoi, who currently plays for Nottingham Forest, as a former Chelsea player, it is possible that he will decide which club to compete in the Champions League - now he is a Nottingham Forest player, I have no doubt that he will do his best for his team, all we need is to focus on our players, focus on our team.

The importance of Enzo and the rumors about his transfer to Real Madrid

- Enzo is very important to us, he is one of our captains and one of the team's leaders. He has performed well this season and he can do better next season, starting from day one. I have nothing to say about the outside world’s speculation. His focus is on us, and that’s the most important thing.

Will Enzo stay in the team next season?

-Yes.

Will players rotate in this game for the UEFA League final?

-Now we are focusing on Sunday's game, the next game is the most important, after that, we can focus on Wednesday. I said before that we don’t have enough time to rejuvenate, so we definitely need to rotate and adjust, and we need to make some changes.

Are you worried that the announcement of England's roster will affect the team's preparations for the Club World Cup?

- I haven't talked to any of them, the only thing I can say is that we are happy because it's a good thing for the players, the national team, the club, and I've said it many times.

Regarding the differences in the team's home and away states

- In the short offseason, we need to analyze the situation, which is certain. I have also said it many times, and I like to analyze games by game. Sometimes we shouldn't lose or even draw on the road. But if we have difficulties away, there must be a reason, and we will use the offseason to find out the reason. On the other hand, at home, we won almost all the games, so, there are good aspects to it.

Are you worried that players will feel tired before next season?

-I am not thinking about next season, but the next two games. But it’s certain that due to too many games, our players may get injured or fatigued, and we’ll see how things are going.

The health of players may lack outside attention

—No one cares about the health of players and will not play if they feel tired. How should you manage it? That's how it is. But I think everyone does not pay much attention to the health of players, otherwise it would be abnormal to let them play so many games.

Do you feel the pressure to compete for the Champions League qualification?

- In the first minute of joining Chelsea, you will feel the pressure, you don't need to feel more stressed when you compete in this type of game. I've been feeling the pressure since I joined the club because it's a club that has to win. We have won a lot of games this season, but we want to win again.

About the team's injury situation

-Yes, Nkunku and Jiwu have been training with us in recent days, and they can all play against Nottingham Forest. Reese James is fine, he has his own plan, and we try to manage him in training.