Chelsea’s Off-Pitch Drama Overshadows Upcoming Port Vale Tie | OneFootball

Club soccer resumes this weekend with the return of the FA Cup, and Chelsea host Port Vale in an intriguing quarter final clash.

A Chelsea Must-Win

For new manager Liam Rosenior, a win is a must. Chelsea are off the back of four losses in a row and their season is quickly falling apart. In the last month the Blues have succumbed to an 8-2 Champions League defeat to PSG over two legs and have also lost to Newcastle and Everton in the Premier League.

The 3-0 defeat to Everton was particularly damaging. It was a dominant performance and scoreline from David Moyes’ men and has added even more pressure to the already unstable position of Rosenior.

Chelsea Headache over International Break

And matters were somehow made even worse for Chelsea during the international break. While the break is usually a two-week window when clubs can relax and forget about the players who are away with their countries, this break has proved a problem for Chelsea.

Following speculation that he wants to move to Real Madrid, Enzo Fernandez appeared on a stream in Argentina saying he would like to live in Spain’s capital. Meanwhile, Marc Cucurella kept the door open on a move to Barcelona and told The Athletic that he “would not have made the decision” to sack Enzo Maresca in January.

Rosenior quickly moved to reassert his authority by taking the unusual step of announcing that Fernandez, a World Cup winner signed for over $115 million, will be axed from his squad for their next two matches.

“It’s disappointing for Enzo to speak that way,” Rosenior said.

“I have got no bad words to say about him but a line was crossed in terms of our culture and what we want to build. As a character, a person and a player, I have the utmost respect. He’s frustrated because he wants us to be successful.

“In terms of the decision, it’s not all about me, or the sporting directors. The ownership, the players, we are aligned in our decision. The door is not closed on Enzo. It’s a sanction. You have to protect the culture, and in terms of that, a line was crossed.”

Frustrations Expressed

In Chelsea’s young squad, these are two of the more ‘senior’ players. Both seem unhappy, and Cucurella has now directly spoken out against the owners.

While many fans, pundits, ex-players and journalists have had their say on Chelsea’s model and its shortcomings, this is the first time an active player has spoken out and made their feelings clear.

Cucurella told The Athletic: “I understand this is part of the club’s policy, and that they want to take this direction – signing young players and looking to the future. But, for all of us who are still here and want to win big things, moments like this (8-2 v PSG) make you feel discouraged.

“We have a good core of players. The foundations are there. But to fight for major trophies such as the Premier League or the Champions League, you need more. Signing young players only might complicate achieving those goals. Against PSG, we lacked players that had gone through situations like that.”

Rosenior then reacted by explain why his Spanish defender had not faced the same disciplinary measures as Fernandez.

He stated: “Everybody knows Marc Cucurella. They know he is a great character; he is passionate and wants to do well. I think, for him, he did a long interview where he spoke with passion and he spoke his mind.

“I had a fantastic conversation with Marc yesterday for half an hour in my office. I’ve said to them from day one, if they’ve got any issue with how we do things, come and speak to me and the sporting directors. My disappointment in Marc’s interview was where it went to. I think he should have spoken to us first about the things that he is feeling.”

Anyone Fancy an Upset?

Despite all of the problems and stories at Chelsea, the magic of the FA Cup means that most people are interested in Port Vale and will be wanting them to cause an upset.

Currently playing in League One, Jon Brady’s side are dead bottom of the table and 14 points off safety with only eight games remaining.

Relegation is all but confirmed for Port Vale, and their FA Cup fairytale has been the thing keeping spirits high amongst fans this season.

One of those fans is well-known pop star Robbie Williams. Williams has been a fan of the club his whole life and has even been the club’s President for the last two years.

Port Vale have already overcome Premier League opposition once this season in their journey to the quarterfinals, beating Sunderland 1-0 in the last round.

Midfielder Ben Waine scored the decisive goal to take Port Vale through, and after the game manager Brady said: “I’ve had some groups, I’ve managed over 500 games in my time and no matter how this goes from now to the end of the season this is one of the best groups I’ve ever had.

“It’s incredible, they’ve worked so hard for each other they’re so connected to each other. They’re finding out each other’s stories through their journey in life and it’s really connecting them. It’s very special.”

Brady will be hoping Port Vale can write the next chapter in the story this weekend.