If nothing else, Chelsea’s move towards appointing Enzo Maresca as their new head coach is a risk. Even when compared to 38-year-old Ipswich Town boss Kieran McKenna, the Italian has less senior management experience.
In fact, his tangible record is perhaps the weakest of all the final candidates Chelsea continue to consider. Thomas Frank has won promotion with Brentford on a much smaller budget than Maresca did with Leicester City last season and has kept his side in the Premier League for three years since.
He has shown adaptability across his career in the game, going from overseeing a team of high-flying scorers to a direct but effective threat at the top level. McKenna, who only has two years of senior coaching to his name, has back-to-back promotions with a tiny transfer kitty as well as a progression through the youth pathway in English football at Manchester United and Tottenham.
His Manchester City academy side were mightily impressive but had the advantage of elite youth players. Romeo Lavia and Cole Palmer among others made them a strong team on paper that won the Premier League 2 under Maresca’s stewardship. Working for Pep Guardiola is certainly a feather in his cap though and the trust placed in him to be involved behind the scenes in a treble-winning campaign speaks for plenty.
Being one of the Spaniard’s so-called disciplines is a popular title for emergent managers nowadays, especially after the success of Mikel Arteta at Arsenal. But it took two years before he fully won over the fans and even he benefited from the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown football not bringing heightened criticism from matchgoers. Maresca may well be a talented coach but the Arteta road to the top with Arsenal is not entirely repeatable at Chelsea with such an insatiable fanbase.
