By the end of the week, Chelsea is expected to officially announce the arrival of Enzo Maresca. The Italian manager will sign a five-year contract, with an option for an additional year.
Maresca’s appointment comes after his successful tenure at Leicester City, where he led the team to victory in the Championship and secured their promotion back to the Premier League. Mauricio Pochettino, who previously managed Chelsea, visited Stamford Bridge following Leicester’s triumph.
The Daily Telegraph reports that legal proceedings are finalizing the agreement between Chelsea and Maresca, with an announcement potentially coming as soon as Friday.
In an effort to bring stability to the club following several tumultuous seasons, US investors Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali have committed to this long-term agreement. Last summer, Pochettino had signed a two-year contract with an option for an additional three years but left the position after just one year. Similarly, Graham Potter was given a five-year contract but was dismissed after only seven months. In January 2021, Thomas Tuchel had agreed to an initial 18-month contract.
Maresca is expected to bring at least six staff members from Leicester with him, including former Chelsea goalkeeper Willy Caballero, who served as his assistant last season. The new coaching team will include Danny Walker and Roberto Vitiello, goalkeeping coach Michele de Bernardin, fitness coach Marcos Alvarez, and first-team analyst Javier Molina Caballero.
Maresca’s appointment at Chelsea marks his third role as a first-team manager. His previous position was at Parma in Serie B, where he had an underwhelming spell. Prior to his time at Leicester, Maresca worked at Manchester City, where he was supported by Pep Guardiola in his ambition to become a top manager.
From 2022 to 2023, Maresca served as one of Guardiola’s assistant managers. Guardiola praised Maresca’s contributions, particularly his work with the club’s youth teams, and compared him to Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta. Maresca joined Manchester City in August 2020 and led the Under-23 team to a Premier League 2 title as the manager of the Elite Development Squad.
In May 2021, Guardiola expressed his admiration for Maresca, stating, “We are thrilled with Enzo Maresca. He demonstrated he will become an exceptional manager in the future with all the organization he has done with the EDS [elite development squad].” He added that Maresca has a promising future in management, similar to the potential he saw in Arteta, and credited him with aiding the development of numerous young players.
This significant move by Chelsea aims to bring stability and success to the team after a period of managerial instability, with hopes that Maresca’s leadership will lead to a new era of success at Stamford Bridge.
