'He was already finished!' - Enzo Maresca reveals his regret about Ruud van Nistelrooy and promises to give former team-mate a 'big hug' ahead of Chelsea clash against Man Utd

Maresca said in a pre-match presser that he had not spoken to the interim Red Devils boss ahead of this weekend's fixture, but claimed he was excited to give the former United striker - who ended his career at Malaga while Maresca was also playing for the Spanish side - a "big hug" on Sunday. He also joked about the Dutchman's quality levels during those late playing days.

The two coaches came together briefly toward the end of their respective careers, and seemed to get on well. Over a decade later, the pair are two of Europe's most hotly-tipped young coaches, with Maresca in particular showing his pedigree by quickly developing Chelsea's rag-tag bunch of youngsters into a coherent team capable of playing some extremely attractive possession-based football.

"I haven't spoken with Ruud," Maresca told reporters. "I will give him a big hug on Sunday before the game. We expect a tough game."

Asked about his memories from their time playing together, he added: "First of all, [he is] a fantastic guy. Unfortunately I shared with him a time where was already finished! But even with that, you can see how good he was. We had a very good group of human beings with Malaga at the time so it is always nice to remember that moment."

Despite the kind words, you can bet Maresca will have steeled himself for the task ahead and built a sturdy plan for beating Van Nistelrooy's United side this Sunday, when the Blues travel north to Manchester for an intriguing kick-off in the Premier League. Jadon Sancho won't be available for the trip to Old Trafford, but Chelsea's stacked squad means Maresca still has a huge amount of talent at his disposal.