Maresca wants rule change to retain academy players

Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca hopes the Premier League will alter their financial rules so clubs are not encouraged to sell their academy players.

When clubs sell players from the academy, the entirety of the transfer fee goes down as ‘pure profit’ and this can be beneficial to those who are battling against the league’s profit and sustainability rules.

Chelsea have already shown this in the past, selling the likes of Mason Mount and Ruben Loftus-Cheek to Manchester United and AC Milan respectively.

The Blues have also done so during the current transfer window, with Lewis Hall and Omari Hutchinson completing moves away from Stamford Bridge for a reported combined total of £46m.

Nevertheless, Maresca said the rules acted against the romance of the game, with supporters wanting to see their academy products remain at the club for their whole careers, also reiterating that it was not just an issue for his side.

“It’s not only us, it’s all the Premier League clubs. It’s a shame because in Italy, we have Totti with Roma, 20 years with the same club – one club man,” Maresca said.

“We love that in football, the fans want to see that. But with the rules now it is different than the past.”

“It’s not a Chelsea problem, it’s all the Premier League clubs’ problem”

Enzo Maresca hits out at Profit and Sustainability Rules, discussing how it affects academy players the most pic.twitter.com/nWfHRaVE9b

— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) August 6, 2024

The sale of academy players has helped Chelsea to spend a lavish £1bn in the past four transfer windows, but Maresca believes these rules have benefitted all the big sides in the Premier League.

He said: “It is not only Chelsea spending money on players. It’s all the big clubs to try and buy players.

“Some of the clubs spend more, some spend less. My personal opinion is it’s a shame because we like to see a one club man but the rules are different.”

When asked whether he thinks the rules should change, he said: “If they want to protect academy players, then probably yes.”