Enzo Maresca press conference LIVE: Chelsea boss on Ajax clash, injury news, Marc Guiu chance

Every word Enzo Maresca said

Enzo Maresca has just concluded his pre-Ajax press conference ahead of Chelsea's Champions League clash on Wednesday evening.

The Blues head coach has previewed his side's third European fixture of the season, as they look to get up to six points in the league phase. As always, there was plenty to talk about for Maresca, and you can read every word he had to say here!

Chelsea in the Champions League

It's a nice competition because you play against a fantastic club. We were not happy with the result at Bayern but the performance, we were happy with. We knew that was a difficult game. Benfica, we tried to prepare the game to win the game in the best way but when you face this kind of club, there are always things you can learn after the game. It is going to be exactly the same tomorrow.

Tosin being a leader

Even if Tosin is still very young, compared to his teammates, no, but 28 is still young. He's been a leader since he arrived here. We have more players like him in terms of leadership. There are things, in terms of fines, the players take control of inside the changing room.

More on Ajax

They always try to play their football. For sure, it will be a difficult game. They are a club that have won this competition in the past. They want to prove to everyone that they can come here and beat us. We are going to try and do exactly the same.

What are you doing to improve?

Malo red card, we can avoid that. Joao red card, we can probably avoid that. You can all avoid but at the same time, if you see Trevoh's red card, you can allow him to shoot and then we'll see. Man United, it's exactly the same. The last one, I think it was a huge mistake, the game was finished and it was 0-3. They were shouting to each other not to concede. They wanted to continue to be intense and aggressive.

Why do you not like to punish players?

I have four kids, when they do something wrong, I do not punish them. I try to teach them to do the right things. I try to do this with the players too. This is the way I like to do things.

Discipline problem?

For sure, it's something we can do better. Some of the red cards, we can avoid that. I think the Malo one is avoidable because the game is almost finished. The other side, they do not want to concede and they want to continue to be aggressive. It's something we can improve. Personally, I'm not that kind of manager to punish players. In my view, I don't think it is the right way to do things. I prefer to help them understand and then from there, do the right things. It depends. They are different kinds of red cards.

Loads of injuries

It's difficult, especially because most of the injuries we had were one or two days before the game. We are trying to adapt. It's complicated because sometimes you plan for some players to play one week, but then you need that player because of another injury.

Fernandez injury

Enzo took part in the session yesterday. We have one more session this afternoon and we will decide with him tomorrow. It is not something we have to be worried about. It's to try and protect Enzo.

Hato progression

We are very happy with Jorrel since he arrived. He is trying to adapt to English football. We are very happy with him. The first two or three weeks, he struggled with physicality and intensity but he is getting better and better. I think he can play both. He is a very good player, he can be a central defender, or a full-back, a midfielder in the attacking phase. He can play in different positions.

In position

We have arrived at Stamford Bridge for the press conference that is due to get underway in just less than 45 minutes' time.

Stay tuned for live updates!

Welcome!

Hello and welcome to football.london for live coverage of Enzo Maresca's pre-match press conference ahead of Chelsea's Champions League clash versus Ajax on Wednesday.

The Blues welcome the Dutch side to Stamford Bridge in just over 24 hours' time, but before that, Maresca will take his press conference to preview the game.

Bobby Vincent is live in SW6 throughout the day to bring you updates from the Italian's presser. Stay tuned for every word he has to say.

Click here to read article