Former Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech has warned his former club's players to be wary of the famous 'new manager bounce' as they prepare to face Manchester United on Sunday. The Czech legend noted that United's players might play better because they are trying to impress the new manager.
United are expected to announce the signing of a new interim manager, Ralf Rangnick after Sunday's game, with the German tactician taking over immediately. Whilst Michael Carrick would still be in charge of Sunday's clash, all the pre-match talk has been focused on the imminent arrival of Rangnick, a fact that is not lost on the players too.
Thus, Cech believes that this might present a potential banana skin for The Blues, who are widely regarded as favourites going into the match. The Stamford Bridge legend said on the club's official website that the Chelsea players need to be wary of the 'reaction' the Red Devils will put up in the 'tricky' match.
"We have a saying in Czech: ‘the new broom sweeps better’. It’s always tricky when you play teams with a new manager," Cech said.
"That’s what our next opponents Manchester United will be hoping for on Sunday: when you get a change of manager, you always have a reaction.
"Suddenly, everybody starts from the same spot again. The new manager brings new ideas, about the team, about the tactics, about the strategy, but only when he gets involved in training does he start choosing his team."
Cech, who now works as a technical advisor at Chelsea, reiterated that despite Rangnick having not taken over, the United players would still be keen on impressing Carrick.
"Even if it’s only the manager who has left, and everyone else has stayed in place, you still get the sense of a fresh start. For players who maybe haven’t played as many games, they suddenly feel like this is their opening, their chance to get in the team," the ex-Blues shot-stopper said.
"For players who have been playing, they know if they don’t have a good week, the manager might pick someone else. It gives everybody a new incentive and new motivation to perform well."
Manchester United have won just one of their last seven Premier League games and they come into this fixture 12 points behind Chelsea. Thomas Tuchel's side are on a six-game unbeaten run in the league, last tasting defeat at home to Manchester City on 25th September.