Chelsea had no intention of letting Enzo Maresca leave the club mid-season amid reports he had been identified as a possible candidate for the Juventus managerial job.
The Turin giants parted company with Igor Tudor earlier this week following a disastrous eight-game winless run.
Massimo Brambilla, head coach of the reserve team, too charge of last night’s game against Udinese which ended in a much needed 3-1 victory.
The search for Tudor’s permanent replacement has, meanwhile, already begun in earnest and the Old Lady are likely to appoint the experienced Luciano Spalletti in the coming days.
Rumours had suggested Juve were prepared to make an audacious move for Maresca, who spent four years of his playing career at the club, but any such attempt would have been blocked by Chelsea, according to the Daily Mail.
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Despite an indifferent start to the new season, the reigning Club World Cup holders have no intention of parting company with Maresca whose current contract doesn’t expire until 2029.
Maresca presided over a chaotic 4-3 win over Wolves last night which saw his side book their place in the quarter finals of the Carabao Cup.
The Italian was, however, left fuming and accused Liam Delap of being selfish after receiving a ‘stupid’ and ’embarrassing’ red card.
Delap was dismissed after picking up two yellow cards in seven minutes having come on as a substitute for his first appearance since August.
The first booking was for wrestling Yerson Mosquera to the ground and his second came after a reckless aerial challenge with Emmanuel Agbadou.
It was Chelsea’s sixth red card in nine games this season and the Italian was unhappy with his striker, who will now miss the weekend clash with Tottenham.
‘For today we have a very a stupid red card, that was completely unnecessary, absolute it was a stupid foul, we can avoid that,’ Maresca said.
‘I completely support and understand the red card like against Brighton and Manchester United that is difficult, but the red card against Nottingham and a red card today we can avoid that and we have to avoid that.
‘It’s embarrassing when it is a red card like today. It’s embarrassing, two yellow cards in seven minutes. Both I think we can avoid.
‘After the first yellow card I told him to four or five times ‘keep calm’, but he’s a player when he is inside the pitch, probably he is playing the game for himself and he struggled to realise and to listen around him.’