Chelsea are set to substantiate Enzo Maresca as their new head coach on Monday.
The 44-year-old, who will succeed Mauricio Pochettino at Stamford Bridge, has agreed a five-year deal and can transfer from Leicester after main them again to the Premier League by profitable the Championship.
Maresca was Chelsea’s number-one alternative after a shortlist that includes Brentford boss Thomas Frank, Ipswich supervisor Kieran McKenna and Brighton’s Roberto De Zerbi was drawn up.
The Italian’s launch clause on the King Energy Stadium is known to have been between £8m and £10m.
Maresca is taking six members of his backroom employees from Leicester with him, together with former Chelsea goalkeeper Willy Cabellero.
Chelsea co-sporting administrators Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart led the recruitment course of after being entrusted by co-owners Behdad Eghbali and Todd Boehly.
They travelled to Marbella for face-to-face talks with Maresca after Leicester gave permission for discussions to start.
Chelsea had been impressed by the depth and breadth of Maresca’s information about their squad in talks along with his representatives, in addition to his give attention to the best way Chelsea wish to play and his want for the job.
Maresca’s obsession with possession and positional play made him the main candidate to interchange Pochettino, who left by mutual consent.
The contract size displays that Chelsea are centered on bringing long-term success again to the membership and ends any future hypothesis about renewals.
Senior Chelsea figures imagine the brand new head coach would be the last piece of the jigsaw to suit into the brand new fashionable construction they’ve constructed on the membership.
The West London membership count on to be busy within the switch market this summer season with gamers coming and going. Buying and selling is prone to see the signing of a brand new No 9 and centre-back, whereas the futures of high-earners reminiscent of Romelu Lukaku and Kepa Arrizabalaga should be resolved.
‘Chelsea really feel Maresca is the one for them’
Sky Sports activities Information chief reporter Kaveh Solhekol:
“Chelsea have had a very thorough process with Kieran McKenna, Thomas Frank and Roberto De Zerbi all considered, but they feel Maresca is the one for them.
“The others had been all very spectacular candidates, however Chelsea really feel at this second in time that Maresca is the person for them, and he shares their imaginative and prescient for the longer term.
“He’s only been a manager for one-and-a-half seasons. He was a manager at Parma in the Italian second division and then he got the Leicester job.
“There have been some points behind the scenes and never all Leicester followers have been utterly proud of him though he bought them promotion again to the Premier League.
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Jason Burt from the Each day Telegraph and the Each day Mail’s Riath Al-Samarrai focus on Maresca and whether or not he might be a hit at Chelsea
“There were problems about recruitment and problems around the fact that Leicester have been charged for allegedly breaking PSR (Profitability and Sustainability Rules) and they’re also under a transfer embargo from the EFL.
“There have been points, however Chelsea simply need a head coach. They need someone who’s going to educate the first-team squad and cope with the media. Every little thing else, they really feel they’ve in place.
“You have to remember that Mikel Arteta didn’t have any prior experience of having managed in the Premier League before joining Arsenal, but he had worked under Pep Guardiola which is exactly the same as Maresca.
“I am not saying he is a greater supervisor than Arteta, however he has extra expertise than he did when he took over at Arsenal.
“Don’t underestimate the Pep effect. If you’ve worked under Guardiola, you’ve got a head-start when going for these sorts of jobs, however, you still have to impress, which Maresca has done during these talks.
“I have been informed that his information of the Chelsea squad, together with the youth crew gamers is encyclopaedic.”
Why Chelsea are keen to take a danger on Maresca
Regardless of having managed lower than 70 senior matches, simply 53 in England and none within the Premier League, Maresca is about to turn out to be Pochettino’s successor at Stamford Bridge, write Sam Blitz and Ron Walker. Even so, he arrives with excessive expectations.
The 44-year-old will tackle the job in comparable circumstances to when Claudio Ranieri arrived in 2000 – with calls for to succeed in the Champions League.
Pochettino’s shock departure from Stamford Bridge largely boiled right down to the Blues lacking out on the highest 4. Chelsea’s house owners watched final month’s Champions League semi-finals questioning why such a stage was not throughout the membership’s attain.
However regardless of his relative inexperience, Chelsea don’t simply see Maresca as a supervisor able to getting them into Europe’s premier membership competitors. They need a lovely fashion of soccer, primarily based on possession and dominance.
His attachment and education throughout the Pep Guardiola philosophy performs a serious half of their considering. A Manchester Metropolis-lite fashion of play is what Maresca has delivered to Leicester throughout his yr on the King Energy.
That very same affected person play which ranks Guardiola’s facet backside of the Premier League for forward-pass proportion yr after yr was embedded nearly in a single day – within the Championship solely Southampton’s share was decrease than Leicester’s final season.
“Maresca is so embedded in that Guardiola style of play that he was always going to attract interest when he was able to make that style successful – and that’s what he’s done at Leicester,” Jordan Blackwell, Leicester correspondent on the Leicester Mercury, informed Sky Sports activities.
“It felt like the club had thought outside the box to bring Maresca in, a man with a lot of tactical knowledge whose acumen has been raved about. That’s not only as Pep’s assistant but with Man City U21s and a first-team coach at West Ham.”
What’s prime of Maresca’s Chelsea in-tray?
Head coach nearly within the bag, Chelsea’s consideration now turns to enhancing Maresca’s squad, writes Joe Shread. Regardless of signing two goalkeepers final summer season, the Blues need a new No 1 – unsurprising given Djordje Petrovic’s frailties.
The departure of Thiago Silva necessitates the signing of a brand new centre-back. Tosin Adarabioyo, who’s out of contract at Fulham, has been supplied a deal however can also be wished by Newcastle.
Reece James and Ben Chilwell’s endless damage points may lead Chelsea to focus on new full-backs, whereas their seek for a confirmed No 9 continues – regardless of a mixed £84m outlay on forwards Nicolas Jackson and Christopher Nkunku final summer season.
Jackson confirmed flashes of promise throughout his debut season – scoring 14 targets in 31 begins – however shouldn’t be the reliable goal man Chelsea have been crying out for, maybe courting all the best way again to the departure of Diego Costa in 2017.
The Boehly-Clearlake possession has sanctioned greater than £1bn of switch spending since arriving two years in the past. Anticipate that to proceed.
