‘It’s been a crazy 24 hours’ – temporary Blues boss Calum McFarlane on Maresca’s departure | OneFootball

Calum McFarlane, Chelsea’s Under-21 head coach who will take charge of the first team against Manchester City on Sunday, says it has been a “crazy 24 hours” at the club.

McFarlane has never taken charge of a senior first-team match for any club, and used to be part of the staff at Manchester City’s academy before joining Chelsea this summer.

He has been appointed to take charge this weekend following the departure of Enzo Maresca from his post this week.

Speaking about the last 24 hours from his perspective, McFarlane said: “It’s been a crazy 24 hours, a whirlwind as you can imagine, but also really enjoyable and exciting. I can only be positive about it.

“You don’t know what to expect, really, but the energy and enthusiasm was exceptional today. They (players) were really focused, driven and hungry (in training). We have a massive game on Sunday.

“Reece (James) has been brilliant, he has been a real leader in the group and helped the staff and players to get ready for Sunday.”

Tensions behind the scenes were a factor in Maresca’s departure and asked if he had seen any of those problems whilst Maresca was in his post, McFarlane said: “No (I didn’t see any of that).”

Liam Rosenior of Strasbourg is currently the leading candidate to replace Maresca as Chelsea’s head coach, but it remains to be seen if he is appointed, and when that might happen.

McFarlane said he did not know for how long he will be in charge: “The brief is to prepare the lads for Sunday. That’s all I know at the moment.”

Chelsea are currently fifth in the Premier League and have only won two of their last nine games in all competitions.