Enzo Maresca and Levi Colwill are a match made in heaven and perfectly suited to each other.
Colwill is the perfect kind of defender that Maresca wants in his back line. And Maresca is the perfect kind of manager that Colwill needs to be coaching him.
‘My role has changed a lot,’ said Colwill ahead of the Manchester United game later today.
‘I’m playing back in my natural position and the way Enzo has us set up allows me to play my best football, show off my ability and to play more passes into midfield to start attacks.
‘As a team, the way we want to play is totally different. We’re not looking to attack as fast as possible, we’re making sure our attacks are calculated and we attack goal when we’ve created the right space to put us in the best place to score. Things like that can take us to the next level.’
‘He’s a perfectionist,’ Colwill adds of Maresca.
‘Even though we’ve got young players in the dressing room, he doesn’t treat us like that. The standards he sets are so high and that’s what we need to hit every day.
‘It doesn’t matter if it’s training or playing a match, you’ve got to be on your A game and give everything you can to him, and he gives that back. That’s why he is an amazing manager and will do amazing things in football.’
Colwill acknowledges he wasn’t able to play his best football during what was, he says, a tough first season in Chelsea’s senior squad, but he gleaned so much from the experience that will benefit him down the line.
‘It put me in a good place to keep going and put fire into my belly to prove people wrong,’ he stresses. ‘That is what I’m trying to show this season: that I’m a good player, that I believe in myself, and there’s a reason the gaffer believes in me.’
Colwill continues: ‘Individually, I’m trying to put my body on the line more for the team because I know how much it means for us to win games and get points.
‘That difference of blocking a shot and not going for it can be a huge difference. It can change results. As a team, we’re building bonds together and competing.’
These words are all completely genuine and natural, and he means every single one of them – you can tell.
Colwill is a ball-playing centre back, and Maresca likes to keep possession and play out from the back, it’s a perfect match.
Colwill is also a player who needs to feel that he can express himself when playing and make those more difficult passes into midfield and attack, and he does it superbly.
I honestly think he should be our captain right now, he has a lot of leadership and influence about him too, and he also leads by example.
Maresca clearly loves him, and he clearly LOVES Maresca! Great stuff.
