Well, here we are. Months after winning the Club World Cup for Chelsea, there are already rumours about the club putting plans in place to replace him. Admittedly, the Blues' start to the season has not been a good one. But that is as much down to the board as it is on the Italian manager, who has not been dealt the best hand.
Several key players are out injured. And one could argue that Maresca was not backed in the summer. He talked about the need to bring in a replacement for Levi Colwill after his ACL injury. That was not done.
It was briefed to the media that the club were happy with the options they had at centre-back. Well, if that was indeed the case, then they put their trust in the wrong players. Chelsea have been very poor defensively. Conceding three goals in the second half against the worst team in the Premier League this week, after being 3-0 up at half-time, is further proof of that.
Of course, if this proves to be a bad season, then Maresca will likely be the one to head for the exit door. And it might not be a coincidence that links to Juventus have been cropping up in the media over the past week. On the other hand, it looks like Chelsea might already be putting plans in place for a replacement.
Chelsea identify Premier League manager to replace Enzo Maresca
As reported by CaughtOffside, tensions are rising behind the scenes at Chelsea, with several senior officials not aligned with Maresca’s vision. The Blues are laying the groundwork for a potential managerial change and making plans to bring in Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola.
Admittedly, Iraola has done a phenomenal job at Bournemouth. They finished ninth last season and that was impressive to most. In the aftermath, a long list of players departed the club in the summer and a lot of people were tipping them to be in a relegation battle this season. Instead, they sit at second in the Premier League, which is remarkable. Let's see if they can continue like this.
Bringing in Iraola is not the problem. It is that Chelsea are not looking at the real issue that is at the club right now, which is their bizarre transfer policy. As a result, they continue to change managers repeatedly, like they did under the previous ownership. But back then, the success justified it. Right now, mediocrity is the only thing the fans have been served over the past three-and-a-half years.