Chelsea Football Club has announced the appointment of Leicester manager, Enzo Maresca on a five-year contract, becoming the sixth coach for the Club in five years.
Maresca becomes the fifth manager in the two-year Chelsea ownership of Behdad Eghbali and Todd Boehly, after Thomas Tuchel, Graham Potter, Frank Lampard and Pochettino. The list does not include Bruno Saltor, who took interim charge for one game in April 2023 after Potter’s departure.
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Maresca, who officially starts on 1 July, has bought into his role in the club’s structure. Whereas Pochettino sought greater power, including over recruitment, Maresca is happy to concentrate on coaching and seeking to fulfill the owners’ ambitions, which they outlined in the program for the season’s final game against Bournemouth.
A message talked about a need to be “consistently winning or contending for the Premier League” and “consistently playing in the Champions League”. Chelsea will play in the revamped Club World Cup in the summer of 2025, having qualified as the 2021 Champions League winners.
“To join Chelsea, one of the biggest clubs in the world is a dream for any coach. It is why I am so excited by this opportunity,” Maresca said. “I look forward to working with a very talented group of players and staff to develop a team that continues the club’s tradition of success and makes our fans proud.”
Maresca counts Pep Guardiola among his influences, having worked under him at Manchester City, initially as the club’s elite development squad manager in 2020-21 when he won the Premier League 2 title by 14 points. After a short-lived stint as the manager of Parma the following season – he won four and lost four of 13 Serie B matches – he returned to City in the summer of 2022 as Guardiola’s assistant and helped them to treble-winning glory.
The 44-year-old led Leicester to the Championship title this season – his only full campaign as a head coach – and he succeeded Mauricio Pochettino, who left Chelsea by mutual consent two weeks ago.
“Leicester City Football Club can today confirm the departure of Enzo Maresca from his position as First Team Manager.
Given the promising foundations established during his single season in charge, the Club is disappointed that Enzo has decided at this stage that he no longer wants to be part of our vision.
“However, with Enzo’s decision made and the Board’s terms for his departure met, we wish him well in his future endeavors. He leaves with the appreciation of everyone at the Club for his work in helping us to achieve an immediate return to the Premier League during the 2023/24 season.
“Staff members Willy Caballero, Danny Walker, Michele De Bernardin, Marcos Alvarez, Javier Molina Caballero, and Roberto Vitiello will also be leaving the Club.
“The Board will now commence the process of appointing a new manager that will lead our return to the Premier League and continue the implementation of our long-term vision for the success of Leicester City Football Club,” announced Leicester City on Monday.
Maresca tasked to qualify for the Champions League
Chelsea fired Mauricio Pochetino after he failed to take the Club back into the Champions League football after finishing sixth in the Premier League.
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The newly appointed coach has been tasked to take the Club back to the Champions League football after missing the previous two editions. Maresca, the new manager has accepted the challenge of returning the club to the Champions League as a bare minimum.
Maresca went to Leicester in the summer of last year, living at the training ground for the first two months to get a feel for the job, which was to rejuvenate a club on its knees after the shock relegation from the Premier League. He was charged with getting them straight back up – nothing else. It did not matter that James Maddison, Harvey Barnes and Youri Tielemans had left. Maresca delivered.
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