Enzo Maresca remains 'very calm' and 'trusts club completely' after guilty verdict
Maresca says he is calm and fully trusts Manchester City as guests say he must use the Anfield test to shield his players
The video relays Enzo Maresca's first club-media comments after the verdict, saying he is calm, fully trusts Manchester City and that his players are focused only on Liverpool despite the noise. The guests argue that Maresca must project calm and absorb pressure for his players, and that a trip to Anfield is exactly the kind of big test City should want.
- He is very calm and trusts the club completely, so the focus is only on what the team can control: football — The club has been clear, and the noise is outside their control.
- The players are excited, not worried about the noise, and are focused on beating Liverpool at Anfield together with the fans — They know their profession and what they can control, and they are top of the league.
- Maresca looked almost too calm, but that is the role a manager has to play — A manager has to project calm and take the pressure off the players.
- The players will not need much motivating for Anfield as league leaders, and until any punishment is known they must focus on their job — The game itself is a huge incentive, and the implications are still uncertain.
- Anfield is exactly the kind of big game City should want now, and a win would show what a good team they are — A result there would mean three points and a statement performance.
- Maresca has a huge job to absorb the pressure and shield the players, now more than ever — The best managers take everything on themselves so the players can focus.
- Maresca cannot say much about the case and will have to deflect questions, but he is a professional and will do his job — He can only talk about football matters and cannot answer the underlying questions.
► Subscribe to Sky Sports News: http://bit.ly/SkySportsNewsSub ► Watch Sky Sports with NOW: https://bit.ly/NOWSkySportsYT Manchester City boss Enzo Maresca insists he is "very calm" and that his players "don't care too much about the noise" after the club were found guilty of all charges related to serious breaches of Premier League financial rules. In his first interview, which was conducted by Man City, since the independent commission's verdict, Maresca says he "completely trusts" the club, who have launched an appeal against the verdict. City insisted in their statement they are "innocent" and have described the judgement against them as "opinion" and claimed it "contains clear material errors, of law, principle and fact and is unsafe". Man City play their first game since the verdict on Sunday as they go to Liverpool, live on Sky Sports, but Maresca has declared "the feeling is fantastic" amongst his players. He told CityTV : “Personally, I’m very calm, to be honest. “The club has been quite clear. We trust completely the club. “We understand the noise but the focus for us is just what we can control and we can control just the football side. “The feeling is fantastic, to be honest. The players are excited for the next two games. But especially they are excited because in this moment we are top of the league. “The players are just focused on that. They know what we can control is the football side – they are not worried at all about different things. “They know their profession and they know that the noise is there but they don’t care too much about the noise. They are just focused in this moment on how we can bear Liverpool and how, together with the fans, we can try to win at Anfield.” SkySportsNews SkySports mancity ► For the latest developments on this story: https://qrcode.skysports.com/skysports/topstories ► For the latest transfer news: https://qrcode.skysports.com/skysports/TransferCentre More from Sky Sports on YouTube: ► Sky Sports…
Transcript
Welcome back to the [music] Premier League show. Enzo Moresca has just been speaking to Manchester City's in-house media. So, some quotes just reaching us. This is what he has said. Personally, I'm very calm to be honest. The club has been quite clear. We trust completely the club. We understand the noise, but the focus for us is just what we can control, and we can control just the football side. >> Yeah. And he went on to say, "The feeling is fantastic. To be honest, the players are excited for the next two games, but especially they're excited in this moment. We are top of the league. The players are just focused on that. They know what we control. What we can control rather is the football side. They are not worried at all about different things. >> Moresca says they know their profession and they know that the noise is there, but they don't care too much about the noise. They are just focused in this moment on how we can beat Liverpool and how together with the fans that we can try to win in Anfield. So those quotes coming to us from Enzo Moresca speaking to Manchester City's in-house media. Jod and it's the first time we've heard from the city boss on this saying that the focus is on football quite clearly in those quotes and that everybody is calm which is exactly what they're going to want to be going to Anfield, isn't it? >> Yeah. I mean, he almost looked too calm in that car, didn't he, with the old John Lennon glasses on? But, um, I think listen, he's as manager of the football club, he's got to play this type of role. Um, but like we've said earlier, you don't need much persuading the players when you're going to Anfield and you're top of the you're top of the Premier League. Um, listen, there's going to be worries about what the implications are going to be, but your job as a manager and your job as a player being employed by the football club until we know more and there is punishment delivered, then you've got to focus on your job. And I think it's a pretty easy thing to do when you go into Anfield. I have to say it's you you wouldn't want a a bigger game at a moment like this to go, okay, let's go to Anfield, beat them, get three points, and show what a good team we are. He's got a huge role to play, hasn't he, Enzo Moresca, at this particular moment in time? Because you hear of the best managers, they take everything upon themselves and shield everything from the players. >> I mean, it's going to be more than ever now, isn't it? >> Yeah. But then, but also, I imagine I get what you're saying. You you do have to take the heat. You want to take the heat away from the players. You want to free them up. Um, but I imagine there's not too much that he can say regarding the subject anyway. So, it's like I can't answer your questions. All I can is tell you about what team we might be playing come the weekend, how we're preparing or without giving you team dues. But, I mean, it's it's pretty hard for him to sort of like not do anything but deflect because he can't answer the questions. Um, so yeah, he needs to do his job and I'm sure he's doing it. He's a he's the ultimate professional. He's been involved in maybe difficult times at previous clubs already and this is one that okay it's not directed at him with how they're playing on the pitch but yeah he'll have to bat away a few questions but I'm I'm sure it ain't ain't the hardest. >> Well let's just recap some of the quotes that we have just received from the city boss Enzo Moresco the first time that we have heard him speak on the charges that Manchester City uh have faced but this is what he has said. Personally I'm very calm to be honest the club has been quite clear. We trust completely the club. We understand the noise, but the focus for us is just what we can control and we can control just the football side. >> Yeah. He went on to say, "This is interesting, isn't it? They know their profession and they know what the noise is there, but they don't care too much about the noise." >> Yeah. He says the players are excited for the next two games. Well, the next one will be against Liverpool at Anfield.