Enzo Maresca has been floated as a candidate to replace Josep Guardiola at Manchester City. Chelsea sacked the Italian in January after 18 months in charge.
Enzo Maresca could become Manchester City’s next manager (Image: Getty Images)
Former Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca is said to be the overwhelming favorite to replace Josep Guardiola at Manchester City. The west London club sacked Maresca, 46, in January after 18 months at the helm.
City are already preparing the ground for Guardiola’s departure, with speculation mounting that the Spaniard could leave at the end of this season despite having one year left on his contract. Maresca is leading the race to take the reins at the Etihad Stadium if Guardiola leaves this summer.
According to the Guardian, there are “positive discussions” about Maresca becoming the successor to former manager Guardiola. The Italian is a top target for City and the club have been impressed with his managerial performance to date.
However, a potential stumbling block in City’s pursuit of Maresca is that he is believed to still have an outstanding contractual relationship with Chelsea.
The former Leicester manager is believed to have terminated his contract at Stamford Bridge with three-and-a-half years left on his contract, with an option for a further 12 months.
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Maresca’s shock departure from the Blues left the football world stunned, with Maresca telling Chelsea before leaving that he had held two talks with City about replacing Guardiola, despite being under contract until 2029.
Maresca joined from Leicester City in June 2024 and led the Blues to a return to the Champions League before winning the Conference League and Club World Cup in his debut season.
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However, Chelsea’s board took the dramatic decision to sack Maresca, despite the club being fifth in the Premier League and well placed to secure back-to-back qualification spots in Europe’s most prestigious club competition.
On top of that, the Blues were in good form in the Carabao Cup and were firmly in the top eight in the Champions League.
Enzo Maresca is out of work after leaving Chelsea (Image: Getty Images)
Liam Rosenior has been handed a long-term contract following an impressive spell at sister club Strasbourg after Chelsea Under-21s manager Callum MacFarlane took over as interim manager for two games.
Despite a promising start to his career at Stamford Bridge, Rosenior’s reign was cruelly ended after a humiliating 3-0 defeat at Brighton on Wednesday.
This could be Josep Guardiola’s last season at Manchester City (Image: Visionhaus/Getty Images)
The defeat extended Chelsea’s disastrous Premier League losing streak to five games and dropped them to seventh place in the race for Champions League qualification, seven points behind fifth-placed Liverpool.
During his time at Chelsea, Rosenior won 11 of the 23 games he played and drew 2.
MacFarlane is now widely expected to remain at the helm of the Blues until the end of the season while the club searches for a permanent replacement.
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