'Not my place to say who should get the job' - McFarlane focused on FA Cup final

(14 May 2026)
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Cobham, England, UK. 14th May 2026.

1. 00:00 SOUNDBITE (English): Calum McFarlane, interim manager:
(On Xabi Alonso rumours)
"Yeah, there's a lot of names linked with the job. It's not really my place to say who's going to get it, who should get it, who's a good manager and who's not a good manager. My job is to prepare the team for Saturday and that's all I'll be focusing on."
2. 00:15 SOUNDBITE (English): Calum McFarlane, interim manager:
(On Man City coming off a busy schedule for FA Cup final)
"It's tough when you have a game midweek and you have the triple game week, it's tough. We've had a lot of them this year, but we're focused on ourselves and how we prepare. We are playing against an excellent side and an excellent coach, so we need to be at our best, regardless of if they've had the triple game week or not."
3. 00:35 SOUNDBITE (English): Calum McFarlane, interim manager:
(On recent form)
"I think our recent form in the league has been way below the standard we'd expect and that we'd shown previously. It's an FA Cup final, so we want to win it. It's a massive, prestigious competition. This club has history in that competition as well, winning it eight times so our focus is on that performing as well as we can against a top side."
4. 00:57 SOUNDBITE (English): Calum McFarlane, interim manager:
(On Cole Palmer)
"I haven't said he's not at his top level. You're suggesting that (speaking with reporter). I think he's had some really good games for us this year. He's had a lot of injuries that he's had to deal with. I was really pleased with Cole on Saturday. I thought he had moments where he showed his level and his quality. So really hopeful that Cole can produce that from now until the end of the season. He's a top player and he's proved that many times."
5. 01:23 SOUNDBITE (English): Calum McFarlane, interim manager:
(On Reece James)
"Yeah, he's trained well this week, happy with Reece. Good to get him some minutes. I thought he played well when he came on as well. Largely positive around Reece"
6. 01:35 SOUNDBITE (English): Calum McFarlane, interim manager:
(On Pedro Neto and Alejandro Garnacho)
Pedro Neto and Alejandro Garnacho have trained well this week too, so we're really hopeful with them as well. Positive signs."
7. 01:45 SOUNDBITE (English): Calum McFarlane, interim manager:
(Enzo Fernández and Marc Cucurella)
"I think Enzo and Cucurella have got man of the match in two of the last three games, so I think that speaks for itself. They're big players for this team, big players for this club and at any moment they can make the difference in football matches, so I'm really pleased with both of them."

SOURCE: Agency Pool

DURATION: 02:03
STORYLINE:
Chelsea interim manager Calum McFarlane said on Thursday that his focus is only on preparing the team for Saturday's FA Cup final against Manchester City and not on reports linking Xabi Alonso with the permanent job at Stamford Bridge.

McFarlane defended Cole Palmer after recent criticism and said the midfielder has shown his quality despite Chelsea's poor recent league form.

He also said that Reece James, Pedro Neto and Alejandro Garnacho are recovering from their injuries and all had positive weeks in training and are in contention to feature in the final.

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