Marcel Desailly believes Chelsea, AC Milan and Marseille all need stronger structures, clearer leadership and the right balance of talent and experience if they want to return to the top. In the second part of his exclusive interview with Flashscore, the former France defender said Chelsea’s recent struggles are not simply a coaching problem, but a reflection of a squad built around youthful talent without enough proven leaders for the demands of the Premier League. He argued that the club invested heavily in young players and had a plan, but that the project only works if the team includes experienced voices in key positions. According to Desailly, Chelsea need a veteran goalkeeper, a commanding defender and a natural striker with top-level pedigree, while also using Cole Palmer with more of a winning mentality and keeping Enzo Fernandez in a deeper midfield role rather than as the side’s main playmaker. He said the club must allow the coach to shape the squad more directly, instead of building the team mainly from the boardroom.
On Xabi Alonso, Desailly said the former Real Madrid and Bayer Leverkusen coach could succeed at Chelsea because he has already shown he can develop young players within a clear system. But he added that Chelsea must give him the right mix of youth and experience, otherwise the same problems will continue regardless of who is in charge. He also warned that the club’s large squad must be reshaped to fit the manager’s philosophy.
Desailly then turned to AC Milan, where he said the biggest issue is a lack of stability and an absence of the strong Italian core that once defined the club. He praised figures such as Zlatan Ibrahimovic as potentially capable of helping the club, but said Milan need genuine decision-making power, not just symbolism. In his view, the Rossoneri must once again build around leaders who understand the club’s culture and mentality, just as they did in the past with players like Maldini, Nesta, Pirlo, Inzaghi, Gattuso and Ambrosini. He argued that Milan are no longer benefiting from the best Italian national-team players and that this weakens their identity and competitiveness.
Speaking about Marseille, another of his former clubs, Desailly said the city and the club demand exceptional mental strength. He backed comments made by Mehdi Benatia and said players at Marseille must be able to handle constant pressure, intense scrutiny and the noise around the club. He explained that the environment is uniquely demanding and can overwhelm players who are not prepared for it. Desailly also suggested that Marseille’s early-season form showed promise, but that inconsistency later on reflected the difficulty of maintaining stability under such pressure.
