Maresca admits he is 'in love' with Chelsea star

Cameron Smith

• Updated: 23 Sep 2024 08:11 CDT
• 5 min read

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has admitted that he is “in love” with Blues defender Wesley Fofana.

The Frenchman missed the entirety of last year after suffering an ACL injury in pre-season, but he has immediately established himself as a key player following Maresca’s arrival from Leicester City.

Fofana has started all five of Chelsea’s Premier League games so far in 2024-25, although he was forced to fill in at right-back against West Ham United due to Reece James and Malo Gusto’s injuries.

READ MORE: Chelsea flop handed 'one more chance'

After Chelsea’s 3-0 away win over the Hammers, Maresca was eager to heap praise on Fofana.

He told the official Chelsea website: “Wes is a player that I really love, I am in love with Wes!

“He is doing fantastic after one year injured and, for any player in the world, when you are out for one year and then you come back it is not easy, and he is doing top. This is the only thing we want from him.”

READ MORE: Chelsea urged to end transfer pursuit

Fofana joined Chelsea for €80.4 million in 2022 and he has made 25 appearances in all competitions for the club, while his Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) currently stands at just €19.2m - largely due to his lack of football over the past two years.

Wesley Fofana: ‘I considered leaving Chelsea this summer’

Maresca’s praise for Fofana comes after the Frenchman recently admitted that he considered leaving Stamford Bridge this summer.

In an interview with Free FOOT during the September international break, Fofana said: “Olympique Marseille... We'll see one day.

“I still have a contract [at Chelsea] until 2029, we'll see. Marseille is my city, my club, I am an OM supporter. We'll see if I end up being at Marseille in a few years, or if I stay at Chelsea for the rest of my career.

He added: “I had a talk with Marseille that really touched me. It was from OM director Mehdi Benatia, it was special. I thought about it but there you go, the current objective is to succeed at Chelsea, to establish myself at my club.”