Maresca hopes Chelsea’s battling attitude will ‘create culture’ he craves
Manager sees team show early spirit as he tries to find the right combination before opener against Manchester City
An otherwise inconsequential incident in Chelsea’s final pre-season friendly against Inter last Sunday gave Enzo Maresca hope that what may appear like a random collection of 43 footballers are developing into a team. Levi Colwill was kicked and wrestled to the ground by Inter’s veteran centre-back Francesco Acerbi and all hell broke loose, with most of Chelsea’s players piling in to support their teammate and surround the referee, Sam Barrott.
It was not quite the “Battle of the Bridge”, that violent clash between Chelsea and Tottenham eight years ago that produced 12 bookings and £600,000 in fines from the Football Association, but for Maresca it was an encouraging sign that his emerging group are prepared to fight for each other.
