Chelsea looks to find a replacement for Mauricio Pochettino who was relieved of his duties on Tuesday night, and Sky Sports reporter Gianluca Di Marzio has claimed that Leicester City’s Enzo Maresca is now the top candidate.
Maresca managed to guide Leicester to promotion this season, bouncing back to the Premier League at the first time of asking. His attractive style of play has likely caught the eye of multiple clubs, with the Foxes getting results alongside playing nice football.
The inexperienced manager hasn’t spent long in the management game after leaving Manchester City where he learned from Pep Guardiola, but he’s enjoyed an impressive short career so far.
The Blues are said to value the young manager for his ‘tactical approach’ and recent achievements. It’s understood that he has an £8.5m release clause in his contract.
Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano has reported that Chelsea is considering appointing a young manager to replace Pochettino, with 44-year-old Maresca being a potential candidate. Despite concerns about his experience, Maresca has shown promise in his initial managerial session in England.
Maresca has spent the 2022/2023 season as Guardiola’s assistant manager, so he will most certainly have learned much during that time. Mikel Arteta has also worked alongside the Spanish manager at Manchester City previously, and he’s done a sensational job in helping to turn Arsenal into a Premier League title contender.
The appointment of Maresca would be a risk for the West London outfit, but removing Pochettino from his position after an impressive end to the season was always going to be a huge decision that isn’t guaranteed to work out.