Chelsea managerial candidate Enzo Maresca has already toppled the Blues despite not having managed in England's top flight.
The Leicester City manager is believed to be in discussions with Chelsea about taking over the reins at Stamford Bridge. The west Londoners are currently without a manager following Mauricio Pochettino's mutual agreement to leave, while Maresca's reputation is on the rise after leading the Foxes back to the Premier League as Championship winners.
And it's nearly five years since Maresca, 44, orchestrated a surprise 1-0 win for West Ham while serving as assistant coach to Manuel Pellegrini. The Chilean was under scrutiny with the Hammers leading up to Christmas 2019 but bought himself some time by upsetting the Blues on their home turf - although the victory wasn't entirely his doing.
It later came to light that Maresca was the brains behind their tactics in west London that day in November 2019, according to The Guardian (via football.london). Aaron Cresswell netted the only goal of the match to keep West Ham just above the relegation zone at the time, though it only postponed Pellegrini's exit by one month.
The Hammers nailed their strategy and restricted Chelsea's strengths through the middle after Maresca was said to have taken over training in the lead-up to the game. It was executed to perfection and ended West Ham's 17-year wait for a win at the Bridge.
Premier League odds and betting tips
Pellegrini's decision to defer responsibility to his assistant that week paid dividends, and the South American may have staved off the sack even longer had he repeated the tactic. However, Pellegrini was eventually fired in December 2019 after restoring his usual methods to no effect, and Maresca followed him out of the West Ham exit.
Fast-forward to today and Maresca could be the man to take over from Pochettino this summer as he makes the step up to Premier League level. The Italian took over at the King Power Stadium in June 2023 and guided Leicester back up at the first time of asking, winning four Championship Manager of the Month awards along the way.
Maresca served as Manuel Pellgrini's assistant at West Ham before both left in December 2019 (Arfa Griffiths/West Ham United FC via Getty Images)The former Juventus and West Brom midfielder's only previous senior management role was a six-month spell at Parma, which ended in disappointment after he won just four of his 14 games in charge. He then returned to Manchester City as one of Pep Guardiola's assistants, having previously worked at the club as manager of the elite development squad.
Chelsea, having been impressed by the candidate's journey back to the Premier League, have seemingly decided they'd rather have Maresca on their side than against them. And it could prove to be a gamble worth taking considering his history at Stamford Bridge.
DON'T SCRAP REPLAYS!
and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
