Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca admitted he was looking forward to the “privilege” of facing Jose Mourinho when Benfica visit Stamford Bridge on Tuesday – and hoped one day to win the same fan affection as the three-time Premier League winner.
The former Blues boss was appointed by the Lisbon giants earlier this month after being sacked by Fenerbahce.
His return to west London in the Champions League – and the inevitable memories it will stir of his trophy-laden spells in charge – comes at a sensitive moment for Maresca after supporters showed their dissatisfaction with him and his team during the closing stages of Saturday’s 3-1 home defeat to Brighton.
It was a third loss in four for Chelsea in all competitions and the second in which they had collapsed after going down to 10 men, following Trevoh Chalobah’s 53rd-minute red card that precipitated a capitulation from a one-goal lead and command of the match.
This is the latest wave of pressure to come upon the Italian during his 15-month spell in charge.
At the midpoint of last season fans appeared to have been won over and during a 5-1 win at Southampton in December sang “we’ve got our Chelsea back” as the team – free-scoring at that point – climbed to second.
Things soured with a poor league run that saw them scrape into the top four in the final day, but the sight of the team lifting the Conference League and Club World Cup trophies went some of the way towards placating fans.
On Tuesday they will be reunited with the man most associated with the club’s success over the last 20 years.
“It’s a privilege to face Jose,” said Maresca, who was speaking in the Ted Drake Suite at Stamford Bridge in which he was overlooked by three framed photos of Mourinho clutching the Premier League trophy. “A legend for this club.
“I feel already quite lucky to be in some pictures at the training ground with the Club World Cup and Conference League after one season. The target hopefully is one day we can all together enjoy these kinds of moments.”
Asked what he needed to do to ensure supporters one day sang his name as they did Mourinho’s, he said: “Probably continue to win trophies.
“I would like it one day for sure (for fans to sing my name) but it’s not may target. I’m happy if they can sing ‘we’ve got our Chelsea back’, because that means as a team we are doing something important.
“For sure (it would be special), but if they sing ‘we’ve got our Chelsea back’, I’m already happy. Maybe one day they can sing my name even more.”
A smattering of supporters near the dugout booed the team at the final whistle against Brighton, whilst some had earlier directed their unhappiness at Maresca directly.
“Most of the time the fans react with the results,” he said. “After a defeat it’s normal the fans are not happy, the club is not happy.
“If in this moment after five defeats in six months we are not happy, this probably shows a lack of balance in this sport. It’s a sport I’m in for the last 30 years, so I know exactly that it’s like this.”
