‘I need them as much as they need me’ – McFarlane praises Chelsea’s senior players | OneFootball

Chelsea Under-21s head coach Calum McFarlane has praised the support he received from the club’s senior players when he stepped into the role of manager against Manchester City.

McFarlane was on the touchline against City following the departure of Enzo Maresca, and he will also be the manager against Fulham.

Liam Rosenior has been officially appointed as the new head coach but will not take over until Chelsea face Charlton Athletic this weekend in the FA Cup.

Detailing how the senior players have helped him, McFarlane said: “My first day was having a meeting with some of the more senior players in the group, the leaders within the group, to explain to them that I need them as much as they need me in these moments. 

“We’re all in it together was a big message and what they’ve done is uphold the standards and make sure the focus, make sure the energy is right. They’ve been making sure the staff, we’re comfortable with them and they’re comfortable with us. I think I mentioned it on the game but some of them who aren’t even available to play against City wanting to travel, wanting to be in the changing room, wanting to be around it…

“I think that’s a big part of why we were able to produce that second half performance. We can talk about tactics, but if the players aren’t committed it could go another way so that’s probably what I was talking about.”

Asked which players specifically he was talking about, the Englishman said: “Reece has played a big role as the captain. Tosin has played a massive role in terms of his leadership qualities, being one of the more senior older players. Cucurella, Robert (Sanchez), Enzo Fernandez, Pedro Neto, just the guys that have really driven and pushed the group.”

Rosenior joins from Strasbourg where he was managing an even younger group of players than are at Chelsea.

But McFarlane said that despite their age, there is a lot of talent in west London for Rosenior to take advantage of.

“There’s a lot of talent. There’s a lot of really talented players. Obviously everyone speaks about the age, but I think there’s a lot of players in this group that can really go on to be the best players in their positions at their age with a little bit of development.

“We’ve got a lot of top talent, a lot of good characters. You can’t do what those lads have done this season. You can’t do what those lads have done second half against Manchester City with everything against them if you don’t have a certain type of character in the group.

“I think he’s (Rosenior) got great characters to work with, really easy to work with. The transition has been really smooth for me and it will be the same for Liam, so a really exciting time.”