Chelsea are reportedly preparing an ‘irresistible economic proposal’ to former manager Carlo Ancelotti as the Blues bosses have ‘doubts’ over Enzo Maresca’s ‘long-term’ suitability.
Maresca replaced Mauricio Pochettino at Stamford Bridge in the summer after a number of interviews with alternatives led the Blues to plump for the Italian, who led Leicester to the Championship title last season.
The 45-year-old – who previously worked under Pep Guardiola at Manchester City – got off to an excellent start at Chelsea, who were just two points behind Liverpool at Christmas and tipped for a title challenge, but things have gone stale since.
They remain very much in the race for Champions League qualification – currently sitting fourth in the Premier League – and are through to the Conference League quarter-finals having overcome Copenhagen, but just four wins in their last 12 league games has ramped up the pressure on Maresca.
Much of that pressure is coming from the fans, who aren’t just frustrated by the results but also the style of football at Stamford Bridge.
Asked about the jeers from the fans during the 1-0 win over Leicester as Enzo Fernandez passed the ball backwards with options ahead of him, Maresca bit back and made his philosophy clear.
“Fernandez knows that if he doesn’t play back, I will change him,” Maresca said.
Previous reports have suggested Todd Boehly, Behdad Eghbali and the rest of the Chelsea bosses are committed to Maresca and are pleased with the job he’s doing, but Fichajes claim they are ‘exporing other options’ amid ‘doubts about his ability to lead the long-term project’.
One of those other options is Carlo Ancelotti, who won the double as Chelsea boss in the 2009/2010 season and is one of the most decorated managers in world football, winning five Champions League titles with AC Milan and Real Madrid.
The report states:
‘From Stamford Bridge they would be willing to present a multi-million dollar offer to tempt the Italian coach to return to the club, where he already had a successful step in the past. However, the main stip for this operation to materialise lies in the intentions of Ancelotti himself, who has repeatedly expressed his desire to retire after his second stage at Real Madrid.
‘Chelsea, however, is confident that an ambitious sports project, added to an irresistible economic proposal, can make him change his mind. At the moment, everything depends on what happens in the coming months with Madrid, where the coach still has the possibility of sealing his continuity if he manages to lift an important trophy.’