Enzo
Maresca says Raheem Sterling is training away from Chelsea's first team and
is not in his plans as the head coach "prefers a different kind of winger".
Chelsea are willing to listen to offers for Sterling just two years after he
joined from Manchester City for £50m in 2022.
Maresca informed the 29-year-old last Friday that he was not in his plans
this season and he was left out of the squad that lost to City last Sunday,
as well as the team preparing to face Servette on Thursday.
Before the match against City had even kicked off, Sterling's
representatives released a statement asking for "clarity" over the winger's
future - a move that Jamie Carragher called "ridiculous".
Sterling's representatives held talks with Chelsea at the end of last season
and all signs led him to believe he would be staying this season, but it now
appears the England international could have played his final game for the
club.
Ahead of their Conference League play-off first leg at home to Servette,
Maresca said: "I'm not saying Raheem is not a good player but I prefer a
different kind of winger."
Ben Chilwell - who was Chelsea's vice-captain last season - is also training
away from the first-team squad and Maresca added: "The situation with both
of them is quite clear. There is not any update.
"We have a big squad and it is impossible to give all of them minutes, so
probably it is better to leave.
"Brutal? I just try to be honest. I spoke with Raheem before the City game
and said he is going to struggle to get minutes with us.
"Chilwell is a lovely guy but because of his position he is going to
struggle with us."
Chelsea have implemented a policy of handing lengthy contracts to new
signings since the Todd Boehly-Clearlake Capital takeover in 2022, meaning
Sterling - for whom Juventus contacted the Blues last month - still has
three years remaining on his deal.
But during a punchy press conference ahead of only his second game in
charge, Maresca insisted he is not fazed by the potential for unwanted
players to be stuck at the club, saying: "This is not my problem.
"I am here to take decisions and think the best for us. I am not thinking
about how many years are on the contracts.
"They have a 20-year contract? I don't care. It's not my job."
Sterling and Chilwell are among a group of around 15 players that are
training away from Chelsea's first team as the club seeks to resolve their
futures before the transfer window closes on August 30.
Maresca revealed he has no interaction with that group of players and
insisted the situation is "not a mess", saying: "I'm working with 21, 22
players. I'm not working with 42, 43 players.
"I can see you like to say we have 43 players but more than 15 players are
training apart. They are not working with me every day. I don't see them.
It's not a mess like it looks from outside."
Chelsea to target forward after Felix
signing
Despite having a large number of players they are looking to move on this
month, Chelsea made their 10th signing of the summer on Wednesday when Joao
Felix arrived from Atletico Madrid.
The 24-year-old - who has signed a six-year deal with the option for a
further 12 months - rejoins for a fee of up to £46.3m, two seasons after a
loan spell at Stamford Bridge.
Felix will have plenty of competition at Stamford Bridge, joining a squad
including Cole Palmer, Enzo Fernandez, Christopher Nkunku, Mykhailo Mudryk,
Noni Madueke, Nicolas Jackson, Pedro Neto, Omari Kellyman and Marc Guiu.
Chelsea also still have Sterling, Romelu Lukaku, Armando Broja, Carney
Chukwuemeka, Cesare Casadei, Angelo Gabriel, Deivid Washington and David
Fofana, but several of those players could move on before the August 30
deadline.
But Chelsea may not be done in the window, with a striker now set to be
targeted. Victor Osimhen has been a target all summer but Chelsea will not
sign the Napoli striker on a permanent deal as things stand.
The Serie A club are interested in signing Lukaku and made a loan offer with
an obligation to buy worth £25.5m earlier this week.
With Lukaku and Broja - who is set to join Ipswich - not in Maresca's plans,
Nicolas Jackson and Marc Guiu are the only No 9s currently in his squad.
Jackson scored 14 Premier League goals in his debut season but is not a
clinical finisher, underperforming his expected goals total by 4.64, while
Guiu has made eight senior appearances in his career.
PSR rules behind Gallagher exit, says
Maresca
Felix's arrival came just hours after Conor Gallagher finally completed his
£36m move to Atletico from Chelsea.
The midfielder's move originally stalled and he had to travel back from
Madrid when Chelsea's signing of Atletico forward Samu Omorodion fell
through.
But Gallagher - who had less than 12 months remaining on his Chelsea contact
after turning down a new two-year deal - committed to Atletico until 2029
and trained with his new team-mates on Wednesday.
The departure of an academy graduate has upset a portion of Chelsea's fans -
many of whom sang his name against City - but Maresca again insisted the
Premier League's Profitability and Sustainability Rules pushed the club into
cashing in on homegrown players.
"It's not only for Chelsea. Many clubs are selling players from their
academies," said the Italian.
"It's very sad. In Italy we had [Francesco] Totti and he played with Roma
for 20 years. We all loved that.
"But now the rules are a bit different and sometimes you need to sell your
academy players for 100 per cent profit. We need to try to respect the
rules."
Asked if the fans would understand Chelsea's reasoning for selling a player
who captained the side in more than half of their games last season, Maresca
said: "This question is for the fans. I don't know."
One homegrown player who is in Maresca's plans is Reece James, with the head
coach confirming the right-back will remain his captain once he returns from
injury.
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