Chelsea Football Club has announced the appointment of Enzo Maresca as their new manager, under a five-year contract. The Italian manager, who is expected to guide the club back to the Champions League as a basic expectation, recently piloted Leicester to clinch the Championship title in his single season as the head coach. Maresca replaces Mauricio Pochettino, who mutually agreed to exit Chelsea fortnight ago.
Maresca, aged 44, joins Chelsea, owned by Behdad Eghbali and Todd Boehly for the past two years, becoming their fifth manager after successors Thomas Tuchel, Graham Potter, Frank Lampard and Pochettino. Bruno Saltor, who served as a caretaker manager for a single match following Potter’s exit in April 2023, is not considered on this list.
The tenure of Maresca’s contract signifies a change of direction by the owners; Pochettino was offered only a two-year deal. Pochettino’s tenure ended with a series of five consecutive wins in the Premier League, earning a sixth spot finish and qualifying for the Uefa Conference League, an improvement on the previous 12th position finish in 2022-23. Nonetheless, his compatibility with the ownership was often questioned and many players were disheartened by his departure.
Maresca, set to officially commence duties on July 1st, is amenable to the club’s structure. Unlike Pochettino who sought more influence, including player recruitment, Maresca plans to focus on coaching and achieving the owners’ goals which were declared in the programme for the season’s final match against Bournemouth.
These involve consistent competition or victories in the Premier League, and regular appearances in the Champions League. Come summer 2025, Chelsea will compete in the newly structured Club World Cup, having claimed the 2021 Champions League title.
Maresca expressed his delight at joining Chelsea, saying, “Joining one of the most renowned football clubs worldwide is unquestionably a coach’s dream. Hence, this opportunity fills me with great excitement.” He further indicated his eagerness to utilise the immense talent at Chelsea, both players and staff, to build a successful team in line with the club’s winning tradition, thus making the fans proud.
Maresca cites Pep Guardiola as a source of inspiration, having served under him at Manchester City initially as the head of the club’s elite development team during the 2020-21 season. In that period, he led the team to secure the Premier League 2 title by a margin of 14 points. His leadership role at Parma the following season was brief, where he had an equal number of victories and losses in the 13 Serie B matches. Despite this, he was called back to Manchester City in 2022 as Guardiola’s right-hand man, contributing significantly to the team’s triumphant triple victory.
Much like Mikel Arteta, the Arsenal manager and another former aide to Guardiola at Manchester City, Maresca’s coaching style echoes that of Guardiola. He emphasises controlled possession and strategic placement. Primarily employing a 4-3-3 system, Maresca has managed to impress the Chelsea hierarchy who believe his methods aptly cater to the technologically advanced team.
At the age of 18, Maresca left Italy to join West Brom, marking the onset of his career as a footballer. This led to his transfer to Juventus, enabling him to work alongside renowned personalities such as Carlo Ancelotti, Marcello Lippi, and Antonio Conte, among others. Early in his coaching journey, he acted as an assistant to Manuel Pellegrini at West Ham, indicating that Guardiola is not his sole mentor.
In the summer of the previous year, Maresca joined Leicester. For the first two months, he resided at the training facility to better understand his new role. This was aimed at revamping a club that was severely impacted by an unexpected demotion from the Premier League. His primary responsibility was to ensure the team’s quick return to the premier league – with no other distractions. Despite the exit of key players like James Maddison, Harvey Barnes, and Youri Tielemans, Maresca delivered on his mandate. – Guardian