“I’m not here to survive” – Defiant Maresca fights back against critics | OneFootball

Enzo Maresca’s press conferences have been somewhat controversial of late. He’s always been careful to manage expectations, but in recent weeks he took that too far for the tastes of most fans.

When his team were limply eliminated from the FA Cup he said the “positive” from that was that they could now focus on the league. That’s a losing mentality, and was compounded further when his team ended up losing their next league game anyway, without a shot on target.

His claim that his target was to get into the top four by the end of next season was also seen as lacking in ambition and liable to let his players off the hook.

So it was no surprise to see him bring a more bombastic attitude to today’s presser, likely nudged in the right direction by a media officer.

Defiant Maresca claims “I’m not here to survive”

Enzo Maresca speaks at a Cobham press conference. (Photo by Chris Lee/Chelsea FC)

“I’ve always been clear since day one: I’m not here to – and I’ve said this already a few times – I’m not here to survive, I’m here to win games, I’m here to bring this club to fight for titles. I’ve said this already many times,” the coach explained when asked whether he was still confident about a top 4 finish.

“Since day one, I joined this club and my intention was to win games, win titles and to bring this club where this club deserves to be. I’ve said this since day one. If you review all of my press conferences, I always say the same. The problem is when you win, you look humble and when you don’t win, you look like you lack ambition.”

It will take more than big words to get the fans onside again, but this is a step in the right direction, and there will be a lot of satisfaction if we can beat an impressive Villa side tomorrow.