Chelsea interim coach makes embarrassing admission in awkward press conference | OneFootball

Chelsea will be managed by Calum McFarlane, the Under-21 coach, when they face Man City tomorrow, as the Blues hunt for a replacement for Enzo Maresca.

That’s a pretty tough introduction to men’s football for the young coach. But what was even more tough was having to take the press conference in the build up to the game.

He was barraged by questions which took a pretty mocking tone of his credentials and experience. He was asked whether he had to introduce himself to the first team players, and basically said – yes.

McFarlane had to introduce himself to senior players

Calum McFarlane in training session. (Photo by Chris Lee/Chelsea FC)

“Yes, I think there’s a really good culture at the club in terms of their support from the first team, from the directors. Everyone seems interested,” the coach explained.

“When we’ve had big youth league games in the Youth Champions League, the first team players are coming across and watching. There’s obviously a bit of an academy presence there as well. I met with a few of the individuals beforehand, but I was officially introduced this morning.”

McFarlane has only been in charge of the Under-21s for a couple of months. His rise has been quite incredible, as his connections with the sporting directors have accelerated his rise. Tomorrow could be a pretty chastening experience for him, although it probably won’t be as bad as being made fun of by the media for half an hour yesterday.

In other news…

The McFarlane was also embarrassed by questions about his pass that lets him into the training ground. What a nightmare situation.

Enzo Maresca’s departure means Chelsea are looking for a 5th permanent manager in the BlueCo era. The sporting directors have made another bad appointment, and are surely under pressure now.