Enzo Maresca has decided to step down from his job as Chelsea’s head coach because he feels he is unable to maintain his position, but it emerged earlier this month that his mysterious criticism was directed at the club’s medical team.
Maresca left Chelsea on New Year’s Day after a rift in his relationship with the club and a disappointing run of just one win in their last seven Premier League games, leaving them 15 points behind leaders Arsenal.
Strasbourg coach Liam Rosenior is considered the likely candidate to replace Maresca. The Ligue 1 club is owned by BlueCo, Chelsea’s parent company.
Chelsea are unlikely to target Oliver Glasner, Cesc Fabregas, Andoni Iraola or Roberto De Zerbi, with Rosenior currently considered the frontrunner.
Chelsea had already considered sacking Maresca due to his poor performance, comments in the media, disagreements with his medical team and reports linking him to other clubs.
The mystery behind the “worst 48 hours” comment has been solved
After a 2-0 home win against Everton in mid-December, Maresca surprised reporters by saying he had endured “the worst 48 hours” at the club and that “not many people supported us”.
The head coach subsequently declined several opportunities to further elaborate on his comments.
But the mystery of who Maresca was talking about was solved. The Italian had several disagreements with Chelsea’s medical department during his time at the club over player fitness and availability, including the playing time of captain Reece James, who has a history of hamstring injuries.
Medical staff disagreements and conflicts of interest
During his time at the club, Maresca had several disagreements with Chelsea’s medical department regarding the fitness and availability of players.
From Chelsea’s point of view, these were merely disagreements over detailed recommendations from the club’s medical and performance departments regarding the player’s workload, not anyone interfering with the head coach’s football decisions.
Regarding reports regarding Maresca’s links with other clubs, it is believed that Maresca and his agent have informed Chelsea of interest from at least two Champions League clubs in recent months.
At the same time, it was also revealed that Maresca has no intention of leaving the club and is open to discussing the possibility of renewing his contract.
Maresca only signed in the summer of 2024 and was already on a long-term contract until 2030, so Chelsea were reluctant to give him a new contract in order to halt negotiations with other clubs.
Maresca’s final game in charge was Chelsea’s 2-2 draw at home to Bournemouth, during which he was replaced by Palmer, prompting boos from the home crowd and chants of “I don’t know what I’m doing”.
Maresca felt unable to hold his position.
Sky Sports News Chief Correspondent Kaveh Solhekol:
“The latest information I have is that Enzo Maresca feels he cannot maintain his position and has decided to resign. It doesn’t normally happen for Premier League managers to leave their clubs.
“But I believe it’s not that clear-cut. Chelsea were considering a change. There were problems with his grades and comments in the media, and also the fact that he was involved with other jobs.”
“There are key figures at Chelsea who have been impressed by the job Liam Rosenior has done at Strasbourg. His style of football is the same as the way Chelsea play. The only problem is that he has a job at the moment and a big game against Nice at the weekend.”
“He is the frontrunner. Other names that I have heard are unlikely but include Oliver Glasner, Cesc Fabregas, Andoni Iraola and Roberto De Zerbi.
“Chelsea’s shortlist is small, less than a few people. They are vetting the candidates and have contingency plans in place.
“The next appointment will be the permanent head coach and he will have to adapt to exactly the same structure that Maresca was working in.
“But I don’t think I’ll be able to get booked in time for Sunday’s game against Manchester City.”
Will Rosenia be next after Chelsea?
Rosenior, a 41-year-old Englishman, has emerged as the frontrunner to replace Maresca at Stamford Bridge.
Rosenior played for Bristol City, Fulham, Reading, Hull City and Brighton during his 16-year playing career.
After retiring in 2018, Rosenior almost led Hull to the Championship play-offs in 2024 before becoming head coach of Strasbourg, part of Chelsea’s parent company Bruco. The French club finished seventh in Ligue 1 last season.
“There are high expectations for Liam Rozenier,” says Sky Sports News’ Kaveh Solhekor.
“Will Chelsea be worried about his lack of experience? His only managerial experience in English football was at Hull City. But I was told: ‘Look at Enzo Maresca’.”
“There is a feeling at Chelsea that relying on Rosenior is not too much of a risk, but of course it would be a big step up for him to move from Ligue 1 side Strasbourg to become manager of one of the biggest clubs in the world.
“But Rosenior is just one of the candidates.”
Chelsea January fixtures
Maresca’s successor will inherit a team that will compete on four fronts.
Chelsea are fifth in the Premier League and on track to qualify for the Champions League knockout stages, with a draw in the third round of the FA Cup at Charlton this month and a two-legged Carabao Cup semi-final against Arsenal. It will be broadcast live on Sky Sports.
Sunday 4th January: Man City (A) – Premier League, kick-off 5.30pm (live on Sky Sports) Wednesday 7th January: Fulham (A) – Premier League, kick-off 7.30pm (live on Sky Sports) Saturday 10th January: Charlton (A) – FA Cup, kick-off 8pm (live on Sky Sports) Wednesday 14th January: Arsenal (H) – Carabao Cup, kick-off 8pm (live on Sky Sports) Saturday 17 January: Brentford (H) – Premier League, kick-off 3pm Wednesday 21 January: Paphos (H) – Champions League, kick-off 8pm Sunday 25 January: Crystal Palace (A) – Premier League, kick-off 2pm (live on Sky Sports) Wednesday 28 January: Napoli (A) – Champions League, kick-off 8pm Saturday 31 January: West Ham (H) – Premier League, kick-off 5.30pm (live on Sky Sports)
