Chelsea Head Coach believes that Real Betis received a helping hand prior to the final of next week's Conference League after their last La Ligamature was moved to Friday, while the blues opposite a Crunch Premier League collision on Sunday evening was confronted
Enzo Maresca has said that it is unacceptable that Chelsea has received 48 hours less to prepare for the UEFA Conference League final of next week than opponents real betis.
Chelsea is facing Nottingham Forest on Sunday afternoon what could be a shooting for a place in the Champions League of next season.
But Betis' last La Liga match of the season, at home at Valencia, has been moved 48 hours ahead to allow the side of Manuel Pellegrini extra rest.
And that has irritated Maresca, where the head coach says: “I am not happy, 100%. You can't allow a team that 48 hours more than the other team when you play in a European competition final. So you think you should play on Friday or they play Sunday like us.
“I don't know if it is from La Liga, from the Premier League of UEFA. If I ask you if it is normal to play a final if a team has 48 hours more than the other team, it is not normal, it is not something correct. Now, if it is the UEFA, La Liga or the Premier League, I don't know.”
The Chelsea chef insists that the full focus of his team is now on their journey to the city area, but he has already told them that Filip Jorgensen will start in Wroclaw instead of the first choice of domestic goalkeeper Robert Sanchez.
“Filip is going to play in the final,” said Maresca. “Because he played all the competition. So it's unfair now that you are already in the final and he doesn't play in the final.
“So for the betis game it will be Filip Plus 10 players. I don't know which, the other 10 there, but certainly Filip will play because he deserves to play that final.”
Chelsea's participation at the Conference League was criticized during the campaign because they work at such a higher level than the rest of their competition. But Maresca says that winning next Wednesday will be vital to bring a winning mentality into his young team.
“Very important, first of all because you have to build a winning mentality and you can't win the Europa League or the Champions League when you're in the conference. You are in that competition and you have to be focused to win that competition.
“This season the players certainly helped to win games, and it is the only way to build a winning mentality. And now we are close to the last step and hopefully we can win the title.”
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