Chelsea legend Joe Cole has shared his thoughts on the Premier League’s manager of the season so far.
Arne Slot and Enzo Maresca have been the standout coaches in England, leading Liverpool and Chelsea to first and second place, respectively.
Nuno Espirito Santo and Andoni Iraola have also done impressive work at Nottingham Forest and AFC Bournemouth, making both teams contenders for European qualification. ..Continue Reading
However, Cole believes Maresca, who took over from Mauricio Pochettino in June, is currently leading the race for the Manager of the Season award for turning Chelsea into serious Premier League title contenders.
‘It’s looking great!’ Cole said on TNT Sports after Chelsea’s 2-1 win over fellow west London side Brentford on Sunday.
‘I think Enzo Maresca so far [is] Manager of the Season. What he had to contend with at the start.
‘We were talking to him, remember at West Ham, and he was like talking about the 30-odd players he’s got and trying to manage the squad.
‘A lot of question marks on the recruitment and since maybe sort of late September, it’s just been an upward curve.’
Despite a remarkable run of form, Chelsea manager Maresca has continued to play down his team’s chances of winning the Premier League title this campaign.
‘No matter how many games we are going to win, I think we’re not ready to compete for the title,’ Maresca said after beating the Bees to make it five Premier League wins in a row.
‘One of the reasons is I think the team that knows how to compete to win titles will not concede a goal (Bryan Mbeumo’s late consolation) like we concede.
‘On 90 minutes, a throw-in for us and we concede a goal. A team that knows how to win titles, that goal they’re not to going to concede. It’s why I continue to say that we are not ready for titles. Even if you don’t believe me.
‘I would love the pressure to compete for the title. But we cannot concede the goal we concede and open the game and give them the chance to take a point here.’
