Enzo Maresca was absent from his post-match press conference after being sent off during Chelsea’s clash with Liverpool. The Italian manager was dismissed for his exuberant celebration of the Blues’ dramatic stoppage-time winner from Estevao Willian. Maresca had already been cautioned earlier for his animated protests when Alejandro Garnacho was refused a penalty decision.
The Blues chief was in far more celebratory spirits during the final moments of the encounter. The 45-year-old was unable to restrain his emotions when Estevao pounced on Marc Cucurella’s delivery into the box. Maresca charged from his technical area and joined his players in celebration, nearly reaching the Stamford Bridge supporters.
The Football Association’s touchline conduct guidelines, introduced in 2023, prevent any manager or head coach who receives a red card from fulfilling their standard media obligations following the match. Maresca’s deputy Willy Caballero stepped in to handle the duties in his manager’s absence.
The Chelsea coach offered his perspective on Maresca’s dismissal following the thrilling victory. “It’s something special for any manager, no manager can hold inside what they feel,” he said. “Unfortunately for him he was already on a yellow.
“We are all human beings. We have been players, we love to see that. For sure all of us we can learn from that as well.”
Former goalkeeper Caballero added: “He’s OK. He’s so happy now. Of course he cannot be here now but we are so happy that we achieved the three points in the last seconds. We are so happy and so proud.
“The players did a fantastic job. Now is a good break for many of them and hopefully we can recover a few more players and start the new cycle of games with energy.”
Chelsea had previously taken the lead through a spectacular strike from Moises Caicedo, before Cody Gakpo levelled matters in the second half.
Maresca’s men came under intense pressure but pushed hard for victory in the closing stages and were eventually rewarded for their persistence.
The dismissal marks a third red card in as many matches for the Blues. Trevoh Chalobah was given his marching orders against Brighton, whilst Joao Pedro received two yellow cards versus Benfica.
Caballero was pleased with his team’s togetherness. “We suffer another red card today (laughs) but we finish strong,” he said. “We know that we are a good team that plays football and we create chances in the first half.
“We deserve the second goal in the second half. In the way we fought today, with four full-backs in the back four is incredible. All of us are so proud of our players. We don’t look for excuses, we find solutions.”