Enzo Maresca passed the keys to Chelsea in the Blues’ last attempt to find the right head coach.
The former Leicester manager has signed a five-year contract to become the fourth permanent manager since taking over Chelsea in 2022, and the club are looking forward to consulting his plans for the foreseeable future. The Italian coach has limited managerial experience in the senior position. after a brief spell in Parma and a championship-winning season with the Foxes, and time in the Manchester City team’s progression pace.
But Chelsea sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart say “the 44-year-old’s ambitions and ethics align with those of the club” as he steps into the Stamford Bridge dugout following the early departure of Mauricio Pochettino. Maresca is expected to officially start work on July 1 and will be willing to temporarily implement his strategies to take Chelsea to the top. Here, Mirror Football takes a look at what their plan might be.
Chelsea have been without a trophy since winning the Club World Cup in 2022 and failed to finish in the Premier League’s top 4 during the time Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital were at the club. He saw the caution opposed to the “project” and the “patience” that are touted by a team whose identity in the past had been almost entirely focused on winning.
Pochettino’s first press conference saw him focus on Chelsea’s history, but just weeks into the season he was forced to acknowledge Chelsea’s injuries and the young nature of his team following a renewal. It turns out that even when progression is the priority, Maresca usually thinks about winning. Manchester City’s youth product Tommy Doyle explained the effect the manager has had on the success of Premier League 2. “I’ve been with the U23s for a few years and I’ve noticed other styles and trainers,” he said.
“It wasn’t about winning, it was about betting on smart football, which is smart but we need to win. As soon as Enzo arrived, he said ‘listen, we’re going to win this league’. When a coach says “Sometimes when you need to win as a player and your coach says other things and he’s not focused on winning, you get out of the way. He came here and said we need to win, it’s less difficult said than done, but when you think we have a very smart chance with the talent we have as players. “
Although Maresca has ambitions to take Chelsea to the top, this will be accompanied by a clearly identifiable taste in the game. The Italian coach is self-confident in his strategies and will persist in maintaining his system.
This has led to complaints that the Italian does not have a plan B and has caused frustration in some corners because Leicester were not more flexible in the way of the name. The Foxes dominated the maximum of their matches, but at times struggled to threaten the opponent’s dominance and spent a lot. of time keeping the ball through the goalkeeper and the defense.
Maresca said his team had earned 15 points thanks to changes made in 90 minutes, but at the end of the day he is willing to die according to the backbone of his football philosophy. “I come to this club to play with this idea,” Maresca said in January amid criticism. “The moment there is any doubt about the idea, the next day I will leave. There is no doubt about it. “
Last summer, Chelsea had a run-dominated pre-season and the focus was on the players’ ability to cover a lot of ground on the pitch with Pochettino. However, the fear was wonderful as the Premier League’s youngest team has experienced a slew of injuries this season.
Maresca’s team will come with physical trainer Marcos Álvarez, and it is possible that this will only involve adjustments beyond the educational field. Alvarez arrives from Leicester with Maresca, but has earned a reputation with Juande Ramos as Sevilla and Tottenham. Along with Lilywhites, Alvarez has been known to ban salsa, fruit juices, cakes, as well as salt and pepper. During the Foxes’ last term, fried eggs were allegedly removed from the breakfast menu.
Even if Pochettino’s strength lies in building intelligent relationships with players, such adjustments may only be a bigger test to convince some members of the team. If there is an improvement on the pitch, that does not worry Maresca.
Given the way Pochettino left the club and the way the club broke tactics with Thomas Tuchel, it has been warned that Maresca’s arrival is partly because he is a man who says yes. Although the Italian is in a position where he is happy with Focused exclusively on education and functionality on the field, he has so far not hesitated to face conflicts.
Even after a successful season, Maresca is not afraid to criticise what he perceives as communication disorders between the club’s hierarchy and himself. He said in May: “Nobody spoke to me in January that we couldn’t bring players. The same happened with respect to monetary fair play. No one from the club told me when I signed that it could just be a problem. I think it’s not the right thing to do. I think this will be the time to sit down and think about why they didn’t tell me.
“I’m in charge of this club as a coach, I want things to go well. For me, there are things I want to clarify and change. I’m not asking for more control. I only ask to be able to do it. “No more than that, it’s just things happening that I didn’t like about the season. You sit down and rinse.
This serves as a warning to Chelsea’s sporting administrators and owners. As Leicester also discovered, Maresca is not afraid to track down those who fit his ambitions, so open and collaborative communication can be key if we don’t want Chelsea to be forced to do so. Tactics components with some other coach.
Naturally, Maresca needs to have the most productive players in his team at his disposal. While it already looks like some of the more sensible stars are up for sale, such as Conor Gallagher and Trevoh Chalobah, Maresca will be willing to do what he can. to fall to the ground running.
Argentina had hoped that Enzo Fernandez would be available for this summer’s Olympics, and perhaps Benoit Badiashile and Malo Gusto could register in France. It turns out that this has already been blocked, and Maresca is reluctant to share tactics with players. for the start of the Premier League season.
It will take excitement as Reece James missed the first Premier League games through suspension. Fernandez may simply be at the center of Maresca’s system, with the World Cup winner being a potential link between defense and attack while Moises Caicedo becomes a box-to-box disruptor. to reflect the roles of Harry Winks and Wilfried Ndidi at Leicester. This may prove to be the answer to losing Chelsea’s £221m duo.
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