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The Irish Sun
29-06-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
‘It's a joke' – Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca slams Club World Cup delays and fumes US shouldn't host tournament
ENZO MARESCA slammed the decision to suspend Chelsea's clash with Benfica for TWO HOURS as "a joke". Advertisement 3 Enzo Maresca was less than impressed with Chelsea's delay against Benfica Credit: Getty 3 The Blues beat Benfica but only after the game needed five hours to finish Credit: Getty The On the resumption, Angel Di Maria equalised with a controversial stoppage-time penalty to take the game to extra time, only for Maresca, in his press conference, said of the long delay: "I think it's a joke, to be honest. "It's not football, it's completely something new, I struggle to understand. Advertisement READ MORE ON FOOTBALL "I can understand if it's security reasons but if you suspend seven or eight games then it's probably not the right place to do the competition. "It's not normal to suspend the game. In a World Cup, how many games are suspended? Zero probably. In Europe how many games get suspended? Zero. "We've been here two weeks and they've already suspended six or seven games, there is some problems for me personally. Advertisement Most read in Football Breaking "I'm talking as a manager because when you're two hours inside and you have to try to keep them (the players) in the game, they're speaking to their families outside for safety reasons, they're eating, they're playing, they're laughing, how can you keep them inside focused for two hours? It's a joke." JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS Players were pictured riding exercise bikes and kicking balls in the dressing room during the enforced break. Advertisement Chelsea vs Benfica SUSPENDED with just five minutes left as referee takes players off due to severe lightning storm 3 Trevoh Chalobah saw thr funny side of the lenghty delay Credit: Getty Maresca told DAZN: "Especially when it's 85 minutes, five minutes to go, it's very difficult. "But we tried to keep them in the best way we could in that moment and, at the end, we are in the last eight teams here in this competition and we are very happy." Gianluca Prestianni saw red for Bruno Lage's men in extra time for a second yellow card as Chelsea booked their place against Palmeiras in the quarter-finals. Advertisement The Blues could now come up against Palmeiras' Stamford Bridge-bound Estevao Willian, whose side defeated fellow Brazilian club Botafogo on Saturday. Club World Cup 2025 Guide SOME of the world's biggest clubs are in action at this summer's Club World Cup in the United States! Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid, Man City, and Inter Miami are among the 32 teams taking part in the tournament, which runs from June 14 to July 13. The likes of Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, Erling Haaland, Ousmane Dembele, Cole Palmer and Harry Kane are showcasing their skills to packed crowds across the US. INFO Everything you need to know about the Club World Cup LATEST NEWS & FEATURES Club World Cup top scorers
Scottish Sun
23-06-2025
- Climate
- Scottish Sun
‘Almost impossible to train' – Chelsea draft in huge FANS to combat extreme ‘code red' Club World Cup conditions
Two players were missing from training HEAT IS ON 'Almost impossible to train' – Chelsea draft in huge FANS to combat extreme 'code red' Club World Cup conditions Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) ENZO MARESCA claims the heat is hitting Chelsea's Club World Cup bid because it is 'almost impossible to train'. The Blues boss cut short his final training session ahead of their decisive Group D game with ES Tunis as temperatures neared 40C. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 Chelsea have drafted in massive fans to cool players down in training Credit: Getty 3 Temperatures soared to nearly 40C Credit: Getty 3 Chelsea face ES Tunis in their last group game Credit: Getty And with Philadelphia under a 'Code Red' severe weather alert, it is still likely to be well over 30C when they play in the early hours of Wednesday morning — at 9pm local time. Chelsea used giant fans to spray cold water over sweltering players during a brief tactical session. Maresca said: 'It is almost impossible to train because of the weather. 'We are just trying to save energy for the game. 'This morning's session has been very, very short. 'It's been just about tomorrow's game, planning for tomorrow and that's it. 'It's not easy in these conditions with these temperatures. We are going to try to do our best.' A draw would take the Blues through to the knockout stages with a likely date against Harry Kane's Bayern Munich on Saturday. JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS Chelsea captain Reece James missed training due to illness. Maresca said: 'It's difficult to work in these temperatures but we are trying our best and will try to win tomorrow. 'It's impossible to do a normal session, otherwise you don't save energy for the game. So the session this morning was quite short. 'We are not training, almost. We are just doing very, very, very short sessions. 'We try just to be clinical and do the right things that we need for game preparation. We have the cooling break during the game which helps a little.' Nicolas Jackson did not join training as he is banned after his red card in the 3-1 defeat to Flamengo.
The Irish Sun
23-06-2025
- Climate
- The Irish Sun
‘Almost impossible to train' – Chelsea draft in huge FANS to combat extreme ‘code red' Club World Cup conditions
ENZO MARESCA claims the heat is hitting Chelsea's Club World Cup bid because it is 'almost impossible to train'. The Blues boss cut short his final training session ahead of their decisive Group D game with ES Tunis as temperatures neared 40C. Advertisement 3 Chelsea have drafted in massive fans to cool players down in training Credit: Getty 3 Temperatures soared to nearly 40C Credit: Getty 3 Chelsea face ES Tunis in their last group game Credit: Getty And with Philadelphia under a 'We are just trying to save energy for the game. Advertisement READ MORE IN FOOTBALL 'This morning's session has been very, very short. 'It's been just about tomorrow's game, planning for tomorrow and that's it. 'It's not easy in these conditions with these temperatures. We are going to try to do our best.' A draw would take the Blues through to the knockout stages with a likely date against Harry Kane's Advertisement Most read in Football Gossip Exclusive JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS Chelsea captain Reece James missed training due to illness. Maresca said: 'It's difficult to work in these temperatures but we are trying our best and will try to win tomorrow. 'It's impossible to do a normal session, otherwise you don't save energy for the game. So the session this morning was quite short. Advertisement 'We are not training, almost. We are just doing very, very, very short sessions. 'We try just to be clinical and do the right things that we need for game preparation. We have the cooling break during the game which helps a little.' Nicolas Jackson did not join training as he is
The Sun
28-05-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
Chelsea's Maresca: Conference League Is ‘Best in World'
ENZO MARESCA said he had to convince his Chelsea players this season that the UEFA Conference League was the 'best competition in the world' as he prepares for Wednesday's final against Real Betis. The Premier League club are seeking to end their campaign with a flourish in Wroclaw after securing a Champions League spot for next season. If they beat Betis in Poland, Chelsea would become the first club to win all four major UEFA competitions, having previously won the Champions League, the Europa League and the now-defunct Cup Winners' Cup. Maresca, in his first season as manager at Stamford Bridge, said he had been forced to stress the importance of Europe's third-tier club competition to his players. 'Probably the most complicated thing this season about the Conference (League) has been to convince the players that for us it was the best competition in the world,' he told reporters on Tuesday. 'And the reason why was because it was the competition that we were in.' Chelsea are two-time European champions but have not won silverware since lifting the Champions League in 2021 under former boss Thomas Tuchel, now in charge of England. 'We cannot play Champions League if we are in the Conference (League), or we cannot play Europa (League). We are in the Conference, so for us it was the most important competition, and we need to try to win that. 'If we are able to win, I think it's a good thing, especially because we continue to build a winning mentality.' Chelsea, favourites from the start, have reached the final in eye-catching style, scoring a competition-record 38 goals so far and winning 11 of their 12 matches. Maresca, 45, will pit his wits against 71-year-old Manuel Pellegrini, a man he describes as a football 'father figure' after playing under him at Malaga and serving as assistant coach at West Ham. The Seville-based club, playing in their first European final, finished sixth in La Liga. 'Outburst' Maresca rounded on his critics after his youthful side secured fourth spot in the Premier League on Sunday with a 1-0 win at Nottingham Forest, even using an expletive. The average age of Chelsea's starting XI is the youngest ever in a single Premier League campaign. Maresca's men were within touching distance of eventual champions Liverpool in mid-December before stumbling badly, but results picked up again towards the end of the campaign. On Tuesday he described Sunday's eruption as an 'outburst' in the heat of the moment. 'From our point of view, they (critics) were not talking in the right way,' he said. 'And the reason why is because, yes, we are young, yes, we are the youngest squad in the history of the Premier League, but at the same time, they are men. 'So I also used what critics had said to say, 'Guys, today (Sunday) is a chance that we can say that we are not young, we are mature enough, we can compete and we can do the right things'.' The former Leicester boss said sealing a Champions League place for next season had been a huge relief. 'We feel much better,' he said. 'I said a few times during the season that for me it was already a good season for different reasons. 'It can become a very good season if we finish top four, top five and if we are able to win the final tomorrow. 'The first target is there. We achieved that last Sunday and hopefully we can achieve tomorrow the second one.'
