Enzo Maresca aims brutal dig at TWO Chelsea stars – their Blues careers are almost certainly OVER

Harry Watkinson 19 Sep 2025 9:09 PM

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca at press conference

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca

Enzo Maresca has aimed a dig at out-of-favour Chelsea duo Raheem Sterling and Axel Disasi, who have been training separately from the Blues’ first team amid speculation over their futures.

The duo were both heavily linked with moves away from Stamford Bridge over the summer after falling out of favour with Maresca, but it seems they have no chance of breaking back into the squad.

Maresca was asked about Sterling and Disasi’s situations in a press conference on Friday, but he hit back at suggestions of unfair treatment by comparing the duo’s stint on the sidelines with the life of his father.

“My father is 75 years old and for 50 years he has been a fisherman, working from two o’clock in the morning until 10 o’clock in the morning,” Maresca said.

“This is a hard life. Not for players.”

Sterling, 30, has two years remaining on his Chelsea contract and is the club’s highest-paid player on £300,000 per week.

The England international spent last season on loan with Arsenal, where he made 17 Premier League appearances, seven of those being starts.

Maresca: “I know it’s not the best feeling”

Sterling was open to leaving Chelsea this summer but his preference was to stay in London, and despite Fulham showing tentative interest no viable move presented itself.

The winger broke his silence by uploading a picture of himself on social media as he prepared to train under the lights of Cobham last week.

Disasi, 27, earns around £80,000 per week, according to Capology, and, like Sterling, he hasn’t been named in any of Maresca’s matchday squads so far this term.

Maresca added: “I’ve been in Raheem’s situation and Axel’s situation as a player and for sure, I know that it’s not the best feeling for a player because if you are a player, that means that you want to train and play games. The situation is the situation.

“I know that the club is giving them the opportunity to work in the right way. I know it’s something that you like and you want to talk about, but it’s not just Chelsea, it’s any club in the world.

“I can promise you, Italy, Spain, England, France, USA, Brazil, any club in the world, when for any reason the player and the club doesn’t find a solution and you give the player all the tools to do training sessions and to do everything, but if you are not involved in the squad you are not involved in the squad.

“It’s not about Chelsea, it’s about any club in the world.”

Sterling’s last appearance for Chelsea came back in the Mauricio Pochettino era, in May 2024.

He reportedly had interest from Juventus and Bayer Leverkusen over the summer but his stance on remaining in London scuppered an overseas move, leaving him in limbo.

It remains to be seen whether Sterling, and indeed Disasi, are able to secure much-needed exits from Chelsea in January. Until then, they are expected to remain jettisoned from the Blues’ squad.

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