Chelsea are set to verify 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 successful 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 Power Stadium is known to have been between £8m and £10m.
Maresca is taking six members of his backroom workers 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 begin.
Chelsea have been impressed by the depth and breadth of Maresca’s data about their squad in talks together with his representatives, in addition to his focus on the best way Chelsea need to play and his want for the job.
Maresca’s obsession with possession and positional play made him the main candidate to substitute Pochettino, who left by mutual consent.
The contract size displays that Chelsea are targeted 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 will be the ultimate piece of the jigsaw to match into the brand new trendy construction they’ve constructed on the membership.
The West London membership anticipate to be busy within the switch market this summer time with gamers coming and going. Trading is probably going 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 want to be resolved.
‘Chelsea really feel Maresca is the one for them’
Sky Sports News chief reporter Kaveh Solhekol:
“Chelsea have had a really thorough course of with Kieran McKenna, Thomas Frank and Roberto De Zerbi all thought of, however they really feel Maresca is the one for them.
“The others have 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 solely been a supervisor for one-and-a-half seasons. He was a supervisor at Parma within the Italian second division after which he obtained the Leicester job.
“There have been some points behind the scenes and never all Leicester followers have been fully proud of him though he obtained them promotion again to the Premier League.
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Jason Burt from the Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail’s Riath Al-Samarrai talk about Maresca and whether or not he’ll be a hit at Chelsea
“There have been issues about recruitment and issues round the truth that Leicester have been charged for allegedly breaking PSR (Profitability and Sustainability Rules) and so they’re additionally beneath a switch embargo from the EFL.
“There have been points, however Chelsea simply need a head coach. They need any individual who’s going to coach the first-team squad and deal with the media. Everything else, they really feel they’ve in place.
“You have to do not forget that Mikel Arteta did not have any prior expertise of getting managed within the Premier League earlier than becoming a member of Arsenal, however he had labored beneath Pep Guardiola which is strictly the identical as Maresca.
“I’m 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 impact. If you’ve got labored beneath Guardiola, you’ve got obtained a head-start when going for these types of jobs, nevertheless, you continue to have to impress, which Maresca has accomplished throughout these talks.
“I’ve been informed that his data of the Chelsea squad, together with the youth group gamers is encyclopaedic.”
Why Chelsea are keen to take a threat on Maresca
Despite having managed lower than 70 senior matches, simply 53 in England and none within the Premier League, Maresca is set to become Pochettino’s successor at Stamford Bridge, write Sam Blitz and Ron Walker. Even so, he arrives with excessive expectations.
The 44-year-old will take on the job in related circumstances to when Claudio Ranieri arrived in 2000 – with calls for to attain the Champions League.
Pochettino’s shock departure from Stamford Bridge largely boiled 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.
But 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 significant half of their considering. A Manchester City-lite fashion of play is what Maresca has introduced to Leicester throughout his 12 months on the King Power.
That similar affected person play which ranks Guardiola’s facet backside of the Premier League for forward-pass proportion 12 months after 12 months was embedded virtually in a single day – within the Championship solely Southampton’s proportion 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.
“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 virtually within the bag, Chelsea’s consideration now turns to bettering Maresca’s squad, writes Joe Shread. Despite signing two goalkeepers final summer time, 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 provided a deal however can be needed by Newcastle.
Reece James and Ben Chilwell’s unending harm points could lead on Chelsea to goal 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 time.
Jackson confirmed flashes of promise throughout his debut season – scoring 14 objectives 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. Expect that to proceed.