Leicester City manager Enzo Maresca is close to agreeing a deal to take over at Chelsea.
“Chelsea and Maresca are set to agree on the terms of the contract,” said transfer market expert Fabrizio Romano on Sunday, “a two- or three-year deal with an option for an additional season has been finalized. Maresca has already agreed to the Chelsea project and the Blues are willing to agree on the size of the compensation.”
“The transfer will be finalized in the next few days if Leicester City and Chelsea agree on compensation,” Sky Sports explained, “Chelsea are willing to pay a transfer fee of around £10 million.”
Chelsea parted ways with Pochettino five days ago. Their partnership ended after just one season, 2023-24. It was an unexpected departure. Pochettino had been facing questions about his leadership throughout the season, but he showed signs of improvement at the end of the campaign, so it was a surprise to everyone.
In fact, in the first half of the season, Pochettino’s job was at risk. Chelsea had spent £424 million on players and hadn’t utilized them properly. By the time they turned the corner, they were in mid-table with more losses than wins.
However, he gradually showed signs of life. The team showed signs of rebounding from the mid-season drop to reach the Carabao Cup final. Although they didn’t win the trophy in his first season, losing to Liverpool, it was the beginning of a change. The team also reached the semifinals of the FA Cup, and the Premier League stabilized towards the end of the season.
Then, without any rumors of a farewell, he suddenly agreed to terminate his contract. It doesn’t appear to be due to poor performance. The Telegraph, a British newspaper, reported that “there is no ill will between Chelsea and Pochettino”.
The Italian began his coaching career as head coach at Ascoli Calcio. In 2022-23, he joined Manchester City as assistant coach and helped Pep Guardiola win the treble.
In March, he signed a three-year contract with Leicester City and in his first year, he led the Foxes back to the Premier League with a Championship title, making him one of the most sought-after coaches in England.
Having coached and assisted Guardiola at Manchester City’s academy, he has been heavily influenced by the Spaniard’s tactics. He has led Leicester City this season with similar 토토사이트 tactics to Guardiola’s, such as utilizing inverted full-backs based on build-ups.
“His obsession with possession and positional play has made him a leading candidate for Chelsea’s new manager,” Sky Sports explained.
Sky Sports senior journalist Kabe Sholhekol added: “Chelsea looked at Kieran McKenna (Ipswich Town), Thomas Frank (Brentford) and Roberto De Zerbi (Brighton & Hove Albion), but felt Maresca was the right man for the job. All of the other managers were very impressive 메이저 토토사이트 candidates, but Chelsea believe he is the right manager for them at this moment in time and we share a vision for the future.”
“Mikel Arteta had never been a Premier League manager before joining Arsenal, but he worked under Guardiola. The same with Maresca. I’m not saying he’s a better manager than Arteta, but he has more experience than (Arteta) had when he arrived at Arsenal.” ”You can’t underestimate the Guardiola effect. If you’ve worked under Guardiola before, you have a head start. You also have to impress
and Maresca did that in this interview. His knowledge of the Chelsea squad, including the youth team players, was encyclopedic.”