Something is simmering at Chelsea - Nevin
- Published
The Enzo Maresca "worst 48 hours" as a Chelsea coach comment seemed to come out of a clear blue sky - or a royal blue one anyway.
The win over Everton may have dampened what otherwise could have been ferocious flames, but something is simmering.
It seems likely that this was a response to an internal hierarchical power struggle. Nothing new there at the club - egos on the board are hardly on the small side.
The thing most managers fail to realise, however, is their extraordinary unimportance to the owners, unless they are being staggeringly successful. Maresca isn't yet, even if he can point to the summer's Club World Cup trophy.
Players rarely win in any battle against a manager - as even Mo Salah has discovered - but managers almost never win against the owners and the board.
Maresca may last through this mini-crisis but, when the time comes and a dip happens as it does with every club, there may now be enemies waiting for him in that boardroom.
From the outside, the fans think the manager is the most important person at the club. For modern owners, it could hardly be further from the truth. He is often considered as little more than the hired help - someone doing the dirty work downstairs who can be replaced with little fuss and barely any emotion whenever it takes their fancy.
Don't look for friends or loyalty up there, Enzo - you will be staring into an abyss.
Sign up to read more from Pat Nevin in his Football Extra newsletter
