ENZO Maresca has left his role as Chelsea manager with the club sitting fifth in the Premier League.
The Italian, 45, departs less than six months after winning the Club World Cup at the end of his first season at Stamford Bridge.
“With key objectives still to play for across four competitions including qualification for Champions League football, Enzo and the Club believe a change gives the team the best chance of getting the season back on track,” Chelsea said.
The Blues have won just one of their past seven league matches and took only six points from six games in December to fall 15 points behind leaders Arsenal.
But results are only a small part of the story.
Maresca delighted key figures at Stamford Bridge – including sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart, and influential co-owner Behdad Eghbali – by steering Chelsea to a top-four finish and winning the Uefa Conference League and Club World Cup last year.
Yet success soon turned to sourness in his relationship with the hierarchy.
Maresca stunned even members of his own staff when – after beating Everton 2-0 for Chelsea’s solitary Premier League win in December – he said “many people” had made it his “worst 48 hours” since joining the club.
Those comments came without any warning to club staff or senior management, who would have preferred any discussions to remain private.
But friction had been brewing in the months before that.
Maresca had hoped to raise his profile following the Blues’ successes through opportunities outside the club. He was planning to publish a book before being blocked, and spoke at Il Festival dello Sport – an event in Italy organised by La Gazzetta dello Sport newspaper – without the club’s permission.
He also made public that he disagreed with the club not signing a central defender after Levi Colwill injured his anterior cruciate ligament in pre-season. The club’s hierarchy explained that doing so could prompt academy prospect Josh Acheampong to request a transfer, which ultimately led Maresca to back down.
The former Leicester manager has also switched agents – from the Wasserman agency to Jorge Mendes – and has been talked of as a potential successor to Pep Guardiola at Manchester City, which Maresca has dismissed.
In addition, he has increasingly avoided wearing club tracksuits – opting instead for his own clothing.
Following his last game with Chelsea – a 2-2 draw with Bournemouth on 30 December – assistant manager Willy Caballero said Maresca felt too unwell to do his post-match media duties, but it is understood his absence was more due to his disillusionment at the club.
And it was noticeable that when Chelsea posted a 52-second video on social media on New Year’s Eve summarising their year, there was no trace of Maresca.
The Italian, for his part, believed the pressure on him was unfair given what he felt were difficult working conditions, and that a line had been crossed in terms of attempts to influence his team selection.
While he was not angry about overseeing a young squad, he felt supporters’ expectations needed to be managed regarding what was achievable – especially given key injuries to Colwill and attacker Cole Palmer.
Chelsea initially intended to assess his position at the end of the season if results improved, but Maresca’s unhappiness was a factor in them parting ways sooner.
The Blues’ next match is against second-placed Manchester City on Sunday – starting a difficult month that also includes games against Arsenal and Napoli.