What Enzo Maresca has been doing to prepare for Man United vs Chelsea after Erik ten Hag’s sacking

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Chelsea travel to Old Trafford this Sunday to take on Manchester United in the Premier League.

It is a fixture that has just got more interesting, with Manchester United sacking Erik ten Hag earlier this week. The Red Devils really struggled under him this season, currently finding themselves 14th in the table and six points behind Chelsea.

The Blues, on the other hand, have impressed under Enzo Maresca. They sit in fifth but are only one point outside of the top four.

Before United welcome Chelsea to Old Trafford, both teams have fixtures in the Carabao Cup to play. The latter face Newcastle United later, having already beaten them in the Premier League a few days ago. Maresca has confirmed that Wesley Fofana is fit for the game but is playing with pain right now.

• READ MORE: Chelsea’s Premier League game against Manchester United just got a whole lot harder after Erik ten Hag sacking

Chelsea’s preparations impacted by Erik ten Hag sacking

Ruud van Nistelrooy is currently looking after United’s first team following Ten Hag’s dismissal.

As a result, Maresca is now having to watch PSV Eindhoven games from when Van Nistelrooy was in charge of the Dutch club, the Chelsea manager himself told journalist Kieran Gill and other reporters on Tuesday.

By the time Chelsea travel to Old Trafford, Sporting Lisbon’s Ruben Amorim could actually be United boss.

The Manchester club have agreed to pay Amorim’s release clause for him to become their next manager. It means that Maresca could soon have to start analysing Sporting games as well in the event that Amorim is appointed in time for the Chelsea match.

Speaking ahead of Chelsea’s clashes versus Newcastle and United, Gary Lineker stated that Maresca is doing a good job in west London.

Ruud van Nistelrooy knows Manchester United team better than Ruben Amorim

Van Nistelrooy has been at United since the start of the season and has been training the team since Ten Hag’s exit.

Ultimately, he is now more than familiar with this group of players. Really, it makes sense for him to be in the dugout when Chelsea make the trip to Old Trafford, rather than throw Amorim straight into such a tough fixture with little preparation.