Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca insisted he was not under any extra pressure ahead of a decisive three days as the Blues aim to secure a place in the UEFA Champions League next season by finishing in the Premier League’s top five, and then battling Real Betis in the UEFA Conference League final.
Five clubs in the English top flight will battle for three available Champions League slots on the last day of the Premier League season, with fifth-placed Chelsea making the trip to Nottingham Forest, who sit seventh and are a point behind.
Maresca’s side will then travel to Poland for Wednesday’s Conference League final.
“I felt pressure since I joined the club, because this is a club where you need to win games,” Maresca said to reporters.
Chelsea still have a chance to finish in the top three, with third-placed Manchester City just two points above them – but a loss or draw could force them out of the league’s top five.
“It probably also shows how difficult is the Premier League, so many teams involved. The ones that have been consistent are Liverpool, this is the reason why they won… the rest had up-and-down moments during the season,” Maresca added.
“We’re quite lucky in this aspect, because if we win we do our job. We don’t need to pay attention to the other results.”
Maresca’s team could be boosted by the return of forwards Christopher Nkunku and Marc Guiu from long injury spells, with both available for selection.
Maresca also debunked rumours about the potential departure of Enzo Fernandez, replying “yes” when asked if the Argentine midfielder would stay at Chelsea next season.
“He is one of our captains… this season has been very good and he can be even better next season, starting from the first day,” Maresca added.
But Maresca said he would have to make changes ahead of Wednesday’s Conference League final, as there was not enough time to recover after Sunday’s match.
The manager was concerned that not enough attention was being paid to player welfare, highlighting a packed calendar that could continue until July with Chelsea featuring in the Club World Cup starting next month.
“If [some players] are going to be tired, they’re not going to play… I don’t think there is [much] attention about player welfare. Otherwise it’s not normal, the amount of games that they play,” he said.
