After days of speculation, Chelsea have appointed former Leicester coach Enzo Maresca as their new manager.
The club have just announced on their official site that the 44 year old has been appointed on an eyebrow raising 5 year contract, with a club option for a 6th year.
It’s a little more complicated than that, as there’s reportedly “break clauses” in the contract with allow Chelsea to terminate it early. But regardless, it’s a major PR move from the sporting directors and owners to show their belief in the new man, who previously worked managing Man City’s elite development squad.
He then led Leicester to the Championship title last season, playing a distinctive brand of possession based football. The Foxes’ Premier League level squad was able to dominate in the second tier, leading some to doubt the scale of that achievement.
As ever, sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley had their say on the move. They must be getting pretty used to this by now – this is their third permanent appointment in their two seasons in charge.
“We are delighted to welcome Enzo to Chelsea. He has proven himself to be an excellent coach capable of delivering impressive results with an exciting and identifiable style,” the pair are quoted as saying on the club’s official site.
“Enzo has deeply impressed us in our discussions leading up to his appointment. His ambitions and work ethic align with those of the club. We thoroughly look forward to working with him.”
Welcome to Chelsea, Enzo Maresca! 👊#WelcomeEnzo pic.twitter.com/ZKfuXKQdGD
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) June 3, 2024
An understandable caution from the fans
There are understandably plenty of misgivings about this move, and with what it represents about the project as a whole. But all we can do now is get behind the new coach and hope he can surprise everyone by taking this team to the next level.
