A lot has changed at Chelsea over the past twelve months. Less than a year ago, they were crowned Club World Cup winners and things were finally looking up for BlueCo. Since then, two managers have left. A 10th place finish and a trophyless campaign were all they could manage. And now, they seem back to square one, four years into the project.
It would be safe to say that a lot is riding on the shoulders of Xabi Alonso. The fans are putting all their hopes on the Spaniard to turn this around. One can only hope that he gets the proper backing in the summer transfer window and a genuine chance to bring his vision to life.
As for the club’s former manager, Enzo Maresca, he has not just moved on but might have had his eyes on his next job while still at Chelsea. He left in the middle of the campaign. And now, he is on the verge of replacing Pep Guardiola as Manchester City manager.
According to Sky Sports, Manchester City remain in talks with Chelsea about compensation for Maresca. The Citizens are hopeful of an agreement this week.
Chelsea are due a compensation fee for Enzo Maresca
It is worth pointing out that Maresca left Chelsea with more than three years left on his contract. So, the Blues would be entitled to a compensation fee, if the Italian does end up becoming the Man City manager.
Obviously, one would imagine that BlueCo would be keen to put the entire situation behind them as soon as possible. But at the same time, they should look for compensation in line with modern football.
Managerial compensation can go pretty high these days. Chelsea fans will know that well, having seen the club shell out big fees so many times in the past.
It is believed that it took around £21 million to bring in Graham Potter and his team from Brighton & Hove Albion. Even Maresca was signed from Leicester City for £10 million. And his reputation has been enhanced several times since then. So, this could be a decent sum of money that ends up helping the Blues this summer.
Maresca or Alonso, who is the better manager?
This is a very interesting topic to discuss, to be honest. Both of them have enjoyed their fair share of success. And have faced a bit of failure as well, although it did not hurt their reputation much.
For Alonso, it was the stint at Real Madrid that lasted half a season. For Maresca, it was how this campaign panned out after the Club World Cup success. But in both cases, external factors played a major role in things falling apart.
One would argue that Alonso winning the Bundesliga with Bayer Leverkusen is a lot more impressive than Maresca’s Club World Cup win at Chelsea. That being said, the Italian did show an incredible ability to get the better of top teams.
The 3-0 wins over PSG and Barcelona will live long in the memory. So, it will be very interesting to see how things play out for them both next season. Maresca has a better chance, thanks to the stable structure at Man City. But do not count Alonso out just yet.
