“Don’t be shy and make that call” – Enzo Maresca told to get rid of £325k-a-week Chelsea star who he doesn’t want
Tony Cascarino has been talking about Enzo Maresca’s possible summer ambitions for one player from Chelsea.
Last month, Enzo Maresca was appointed manager of Chelsea.
Ever since he arrived at Stamford Bridge, the team has added a number of new players.
He has been joined in west London by Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Marc Guiu, Omari Kellyman, and Tosin Adarabioyo.
Now that a number of players have been strongly linked to transfers away from Chelsea, departures are to be expected.
Under Enzo Maresca, Tony Cascarino believes a Chelsea player has no future.
Nicolas Jackson was Chelsea’s lone recognized striker at the end of the previous campaign.
The have since brought in Guiu from Barcelona, and while it has been claimed that he will stay with the first team, the Spaniard is still just 18.
Ultimately, Maresca could probably do with an experienced centre-forward in his squad.
Even so, Cascarino cannot see Romelu Lukaku remaining at Chelsea this summer. Discussing what he thinks will happen with the 31-year-old on talkSPORT (07/07/2024 at 08:56), he said: “I always feel this is a manager’s choice. The club go, ‘You know, we have got Romelu, he is still on our books, do you have any plans?’
“And if he turns around and goes, ‘No, he is not for me, he is not the sort of striker I want in the club, I am looking for different types of players’, I think it totally falls on the new manager.
“Maresca will have to make the call on that one. I am sure if he turned around and said, ‘I think I can get something out of Romelu, I think I could make him a player that we have seen before’… but I don’t think he will say that. I think he will be the other way. The way he plays football doesn’t really look like a manager or a coach who really needs someone leading the line.”
What should Enzo Maresca do with Romelu Lukaku?
If Chelsea want an extra body up front who is experienced, then Lukaku could be the solution for Maresca.
The Belgium international, who is on a £325,000-a-week contract (Spotrac), is just that.
But at the end of the day, it comes down to whether Lukaku actually wants to be at Chelsea.
Given that he spent the last two seasons out on loan, the answer is no. Therefore, the best option probably would be to let him go this summer.
And that is the most likely scenario as Lukaku continues to be linked to several clubs, including AC Milan.