On July 13, Chelsea was crowned with absolute brilliance as Club World Champion after defeating (3-0) the imposing PSG, the team with the most muscle of the moment. His coach, , was the fashionable technician. The Blues had previously qualified for the Champions League and had also won the Conference League after beating Betis (4-1). His Chelsea team still showed signs of greatness after beating Barcelona (3-0) with overwhelming superiority in this edition of the Champions League. Alive in all competitions, although fifth in the Premier League, on the first day of the year Chelsea decided to dismiss a highly valued coach.
It was the news of the day in football England. Maresca, 45, has been removed from his position and this decision has nuances that are more complicated to explain. The Italian had been able to make sense of the policy of compulsive purchases undertaken by the American Todd Boehly since he bought the London club in 2022. However, after last year’s successes, Chelsea is fifth in the Premier League; far away, leader with 15 points advantage. However, today the title may not be the real fight for a team alive in the Champions League – 13th in the group, just two points away from being among the top eight -, semifinalist of the League Cup and in the third round of the English Cup.
Without a doubt, the Italian’s dismissal has been influenced by the latest results in the Premier League, where he has only achieved one win against Everton in the last seven games. The baggage is four points out of a possible 21, with four draws and two defeats in this period. Bad results, but not catastrophic. The coach has been condemned for his bad relations with the entity’s leadership. These tensions increased after it was revealed that Manchester City had set its target on the Italian coach and decided to close a relationship that dates back to 2016 and that already includes six Premier titles and one Champions League.
The Catalan coach’s doubts about continuing to work in Manchester would have conditioned Maresca’s future at Chelsea, where its leaders also did not understand that a team with players like Cucurella, James, Caicedo, Enzo Fernández or Palmer had only obtained eight victories in 19 games in the Premier. Precisely one of these players, , sent a message of encouragement to Maresca after his dismissal. “Thank you for everything, coach, and for your staff. For the work and trust from day one, and for the memories!”, the Catalan left-hander indicated on his networks, who accompanied the message with the symbol of the two trophies won during his time on the bench, the Conference League and the Club World Cup.
“I wish you all the best in what’s to come. Good luck, boss!” Cucurella continued in his publication, accompanied by two photos in which he appears celebrating with the Italian coach.
The entity has embarked on hiring a new coach and Liam Rosenior, coach of Strasbourg in France, seventh in Ligue 1, is making noise. It so happens that both Chelsea and Strasbourg are owned by the Clearlake Group.
The club made the coach’s dismissal official with a rather diplomatic statement. “Chelsea Football Club and coach Enzo Maresca have separated,” indicated the blue entity regarding the departure of the coach, who came to the bench in June 2024 and had a contract until June 2029. Chelsea’s next game is, precisely, this Sunday (6:30 p.m.) at City’s field. They could not get past a draw at Sunderland’s home (0-0), so they are in second place, four points behind Arsenal when they could have been two points behind. Also a bad day for Liverpool, fourth, who also drew 0-0 at home against Leeds.
