Manchester City’s post-Pep Guardiola era has yet to begin. In the lull that is June, City are still fleshing out the finer points of a deal that shall see Enzo Maresca become his successor. Until he is put on the spot, we won’t know Guardiola’s true feelings about Maresca’s appointment.
But having worked with the Italian previously at City and enjoyed success, including winning the Treble, it is safe to assume Guardiola will be a fan of the Blues’ next step. Supporters, however, could need some time to get used to the new boss, especially considering Maresca’s now infamous stint at Chelsea.
MEN Sport has spoken to Football.London‘s Senior Chelsea reporter Bobby Vincent to reflect on Maresca’s time at Stamford Bridge and what City fans can expect from their incoming new boss. “We met him for the first time in Charlotte, North Carolina, on the pre-season tour,” Vincent recalled.
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“There were a few journalists there and we had a sit down in a really posh bar where the Chelsea team were staying. Straight away, he came across as really nice, really personable and we had a really good chat with him about his time with Pep.
“From then on, it was a lot better for us because we got to know him and find out a bit more about what his personality was like.” However, as the pressures of the job started to take its toll, that relationship with the media became more strained.
“When he was personable when we first met him, it might have been down to the scenario,” he continued. “There was only four journalists, so five of us there, and he was always going to come across as more personable then.
“When it came to press conferences, when it was a busier room and more pressure… not straight away because when he first came in he was still quite relaxed, it was only really towards the end of his Chelsea tenure he became a lot more uptight. It didn’t feel like we had much of a relationship with him, as journalists, which you feel like you do have with managers.
“I am not expecting them to be our friends but it felt like we almost lost him in terms of any sort of personal connection. I don’t mean to sound like I am complaining about that but I think that was the reality towards the end.”
When things were going well for Maresca at Chelsea, they went very well. He won the Conference League in his first season, the minimum target for that competition, and returned Chelsea to the top four.
That summer, Maresca led Chelsea to the Club World Cup playing a familiar brand of football. Similarly to Guardiola, the Italian favoured his side playing out from the back and Vincent recalled how the 46-year-old once went mad at goalkeeper Robert Sanchez for going long.
He likes his teams to have possession and was a big fan of the ‘third man run’ tactic. His coaching also saw him change Enzo Fernandez’s game entirely – seen by many to be a positive. But Vincent believes it would be unfair to classify Maresca as a one-dimensional coach.
“In his second season, he changed his style a lot and Sanchez seemed to go long more often,” he continued. “The Club World Cup final, which was arguably his best game as Chelsea manager as they thrashed PSG, a lot of that was down to Sanchez playing long, diagonal balls to Malo Gusto, who was the guy running in behind.
“PSG did not know how to deal with it because that is probably Sanchez’s best area. He wasn’t afraid to change it and he went against some of his principles [to be successful].”
Unfortunately for Maresca, that second season is when the wheels came off as his relationship with Chelsea’s owners BlueCo became strained beyond repair. Vincent believes his downfall started soon after the Club World Cup glory in New Jersey.
“When Maresca found out the severity of Levi Colwill’s injury last August, as soon as he knew he was out for the majority of the season, for Maresca that was a disaster because that was his centre-back and a centre-back he really relied on for his style to work,” he explained. “Colwill is the only centre-back Chelsea have who can break lines with his passes and it is really evident when he is not playing.
“As soon as Colwill was injured, Maresca spoke with the sporting directors about bringing in someone new and the sporting directors were trying to do that, but they went for Dean Huijsen, who went to Real Madrid. They felt they could do nothing about that because he is a Real Madrid fan and that was his dream, but still, they went for him.
“Apart from him, the centre-back market was pretty dry and they did not want to panic buy. They decided to tell Enzo to source a replacement internally and he had options, but he did not feel they were adequate options.
“He made that really clear in one of his first press conferences of the season when he went on this mad rant saying how: ‘The club know what I think,’ and that is where it all stemmed from. Speaking to sources close to BlueCo, they think Maresca’s demeanour changed after winning two trophies.
“They think he became more arrogant and full of himself and just changed a bit. From Maresca’s side, speaking to those close to him, they dispute that completely and they say he wanted a centre-back who was close to the level of Levi Colwill.
“December was the beginning of the end. There was one week, early in December, that Chelsea played three times in six or seven days and Reece James played in every game, for 90 per cent of the minutes, and the medical team were telling him not to do that so he fell out with them.
“That led to him saying that it was the worst 48 hours of his career which was extraordinary. I remember going back to my family for Christmas and all the noise was that something was going to happen.
“Then there was the Bournemouth game at Stamford Bridge where they drew 2-2, it was a disappointing game, and then he didn’t come out for his press conference after the game. We were told by the club he was ill and you are a bit sceptical of that because you have seen these things happen before.
“Willy Caballero [Maresca’s assistant] came out and did the press conference, backed up the claims Maresca was ill and then just over 24 hours later it was announced he had departed and we found out he was never ill. It was a rollercoaster and it was definitely one that left a sour taste in Chelsea fans’ mouths and a lot of the players’ mouths as well.”
Vincent fears City and Maresca could butt heads if the Italian is not allowed as much say on transfers and football matters as he would like. “To accept this head coach role, you need to be someone with little of an ego and I think the best managers do have them. Maresca is a great coach and I think he will do a great job at City, for what it’s worth, but I think he has got an ego,” he explained.
“It is not a bad thing, people have egos especially when they are successful in football but if you have an ego when you are a head coach, that can create a problem in the future. If he does well at City, perhaps they will give him more say and more trust in him.”
Despite this, Vincent is confident City are going in the right direction with Maresca. “When any manager like Guardiola has been at a club for such a long time, whenever they leave it is best to try and change as few things as possible,” he concluded. “I think they [the City board] feel the same way because they are going for someone from Pep’s school of coaching.
“For Maresca, he has already been at the mad house that is Chelsea, took a few hits but from his point of view, whatever environment you go into will have a bit more stability. He will know a few of the players so I think it is a good fit.
“I worry a bit because City fans are so used to Pep, the best manager we have ever seen, so it is big shoes to fill. It might take a bit of time to get his style across to the players and if that does happen, I would hope the fans do not turn against him.
“But I think he will do well and I hope he does well because from a working relationship I had with him, I do like him and I think he came out of the whole Chelsea situation very well.”
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