After Wayne Rooney told senior players to question the way Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca rotated his players, Maresca defended it. Maresca has made a league-high 85 starting XI changes this season and seven in each of Chelsea’s last five matches, including the 2-2 draw at Qarabag.
Maresca said that rotation fits with the club’s model and the needs of playing in the Premier League and Champions League. He talked about chances for Andrey Santos and Jorrel Hato, who joined the team in August from Ajax, as well as Estevao Willian, a teenager. He also talked about Josh Acheampong’s path after playing with the first team last season and this one.
“We are in a moment, in an era, where anyone can say what they want, it’s correct, I completely respect that. But since I joined the club, it’s my view to rotate players, and no one complained when you don’t win a game. When the rotation is Andrey Santos, Jorrel Hato, Estevao Willian, it’s not about rotation.
“They are good, they are talented, they are young, and for sure when they are young, you have to give them the chance to make some mistakes, to be better. The same thing happened in the past with Josh Acheampong.”
He continued:
“For me, personally, it’s impossible to play with the same players, 65 games in one season, Champions League, Premier League. You cannot say, “But why years ago it was possible?” Because it was different. It was not so physical. I played for 20 years. It was not so physical. Now it’s changed.
“You need to rotate. This is my personal view. You need to do that. If you want to see a season like a marathon, then when you are in February, when you are in March, that is the last spring, probably you have to think in a different way. But at the moment, I think you have to think like a long race.”
Chelsea is getting ready to play Wolves next, and people are watching to see if they stick with their lineup.
Wayne Rooney Comments on Chelsea’s “Chopping and Changing”
Rooney said that senior players should question Enzo Maresca’s frequent changes. He discussed the situation after Chelsea made seven changes in a 2-2 draw with Qarabag. This was their fifth straight match with seven changes.
Rooney said the policy hurts chemistry and morale, pointing to the 85 changes to the starting XI this season, the most in the Premier League. He discussed recent results and said leaders should talk to the manager if things aren’t going well:
“The players want to play, they want to build relationships. When you keep chopping and changing then the players won’t be happy. I think that will come back to bite them. If they are getting results all the time then you can’t question it but if they’re not, there has to be questions asked.
“I think most clubs now have a leadership group and as a group you have to go and question the manager.”