Chelsea chiefs stunned by Enzo Maresca’s inside knowledge of the club, with Leicester boss poised to succeed Pochettino

CHELSEA are on the verge of making Enzo Maresca their new boss.

Todd Boehly and Chelsea’s ownership group have identified the 44-year-old Leicester City boss as the man they want to replace Mauricio Pochettino.

And they have been given permission by Leicester City to speak to the Italian who led the Foxes to Championship glory and promotion back to the Prem in his debut season at the King Power.

Chelsea co-sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart will fly to Marbella for face-to-face talks with Maresca in the next 24 hours.

That suggests Chelsea have triggered the £9million release clause in Maresca’s three-year deal with the Foxes.

Chelsea are confident a three-year deal will be agreed quickly, with Maresca keen on a move to Stamford Bridge.

Maresca’s appointment will complete a meteoric rise for the 44-year-old Italian, who has emerged ahead of Roberto De Zerbi, Kieran McKenna, Thomas Frank and Thomas Tuchel to become Chelsea’s top target.

Maresca’s first managerial role was short-lived as he lasted just 14 games at relegated Italian giants Parma in the summer of 2021 before being sacked by the Serie B club.

However, he returned to City, where he had enjoyed success as manager of their elite development team, to become Pep Guardiola’s first-team assistant coach in the summer of 2022.

A year later, after celebrating a historic treble including Champions League success with City, Maresca moved again to newly relegated Leicester City.

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There he lived up to his reputation as one of Pep Guardiola’s disciples – along with Mikel Arteta and Vincent Kompany – playing a patient, possession-based style of football similar to City’s model.

This sometimes made him unpopular with the fickle Foxes fans, who preferred a much more direct approach.

However, despite a few bumps along the way, Maresca led Leicester back to the Premier League at the first attempt and also lifted the Championship trophy.

Marseca’s sometimes stubborn and meticulous attention to detail and tactical intelligence endeared him to Blues bosses.

Former Leicester City Spurs midfielder Harry Winks has described Maresca as the best head coach he has ever worked with – even though he previously played for Pochettino, Antonio Conte and Jose Mourinho during his Spurs days.

And Chelsea have been blown away by Maresca’s knowledge of their own youth team, as well as his unique determination on the brand of football he intends to bring to Stamford Bridge.

While many managers might see the Chelsea job as a poisoned chalice, Maresca can’t wait to work with their vast squad of expensive, quality kids and convince them of his methods.

SunSport understands the Italian has been facing financial difficulties and an expected points deduction at Leicester City and believes the Foxes have failed to disclose the true extent of their financial situation.

However, with no hands-on experience of managing in the Premier League, Maresca may have to quickly win over Chelsea fans – as he has clearly already done with their Board.