Chelsea Football Club took the extraordinary step of placing their head of medical staff on the substitutes' bench to oversee former manager Enzo Maresca, after he repeatedly refused to follow protocols for players returning from injury, Daily Mail Sport can reveal.
The Root of the Conflict: Ignoring Medical Advice
The relationship between the Italian manager and the Chelsea hierarchy deteriorated rapidly over his handling of injured stars. Sources disclose that a major rift developed after Maresca was deemed to have gone against specific medical advice on multiple occasions.
This came to a head following the re-injury of two unnamed players, which prompted the club to act. In December, Chelsea officials took the highly unusual measure of inserting performance director Bryce Cavanagh into the technical area during matches.
Bench Supervision and a Formal Warning
Cavanagh, a no-nonsense Australian and a highly regarded sports scientist formerly with the FA, was tasked with ensuring Maresca adhered to agreed-upon recovery plans. These plans typically see players gradually build up their minutes over several games rather than playing a full 90 immediately.
His role was to remind Maresca of the pre-agreed times for substitutions to minimise relapse risk. It is understood Cavanagh first took his place on the bench for an away match on December 20, just a week after Maresca's public outburst about enduring "the worst 48 hours" of his career following a win over Everton.
The situation worsened to the point where Chelsea sent Maresca a formal letter reminding him of his responsibilities regarding player welfare. The relationship was strained further when Maresca informed the club he had held talks with Manchester City and Juventus in October and December.
Fallout and a New Era Under Rosenior
The spectacular breakdown led to Maresca's dismissal earlier this month, a stark fall from grace for the manager who had guided Chelsea to the Club World Cup trophy last summer.
Chelsea have since moved quickly to appoint Liam Rosenior, who joined from sister club Strasbourg as part of the BlueCo multi-club model. Rosenior's tenure began with a 5-1 FA Cup victory at Charlton Athletic.
Chelsea declined to comment when approached. A representative for Enzo Maresca has also been approached for comment.
