Enzo Maresca was just honored as the best coach of the month in the Premier League on December 12. Less than 3 weeks later, he and Chelsea went their separate ways in an unexpected way.
This farewell could shock many The Blues fans because at the end of November, Chelsea just defeated Barcelona 3-0 in the Champions League. 5 days later, they also showed that they could compete for the Premier League title with a "win-win" match against Arsenal when they only played with 10 men quite early. At that time, Chelsea was only 3 points behind Arsenal in the rankings. Now, the gap is 9 points and the incident has come.
Whatever the real reason for this farewell, this is not good for Chelsea because it is outside the plan, which could cause all targets this season to fail. In January 2026 alone, The Blues will have to play 9 matches in 4 arenas and the team's confidence has never been so low since Enzo Maresca took over the team.
If Maresca leaves for the rest of this season, the Italian coach will have 2 entire campaigns with the Stamford Bridge team. If anything needs to change, an assessment at the end of the season will be more reasonable than the fleeting farewell scene as it is now. Maresca's contract is still valid for another 3 and a half years, with a 12-month extension clause. Therefore, this farewell is a shock.
After the 2-0 victory over Everton on December 13, Maresca suddenly shared that he had just gone through "48 hours of the worst crisis". Although the 45-year-old strategist did not disclose what happened, everyone understood that something was wrong at Stamford Bridge dressing room. At that time, Maresca still affirmed that he would go with the team until at least the end of the 2026-2027 season, but the suspicion of an upheaval was felt more clearly than ever.
Since the Todd Boehly-Clearlake group acquired the club at the end of May 2022, Chelsea has replaced 6 head coaches. The American owners took over the club when Thomas Tuchel was a coach but left after only 4 months. Graham Potter stayed for 7 months, Bruno Saltor only coached 1 match, Frank Lampard made 11 interim spells and Mauricio Pochettino for 1 season. Enzo Maresca was the longest-serving player with more than 1.5 years and 92 matches. He won the first 2 titles after Roman Abramovich's era, the UEFA Conference League and the FIFA Club World Cup, and brought Chelsea back to the UEFA Champions League after 2 years of absence.
No matter who Maresca replaces him, getting the team through this crisis immediately is almost impossible. Chelsea will play an average of 2 matches/week from now until February 10, the new coach, no matter how superior, cannot adapt in time. Therefore, to limit this inadequacy, Chelsea must recruit someone suitable for Maresca's playing style so that they can immediately operate at the most basic level.
Chelsea fans did not really support Maresca, which is one of the reasons for this farewell. In the win against Cardiff City in the League Cup, The Blues fans sang the name of the Italian coach. But just 2 weeks later, in the 2-2 draw with Bournemouth, when Maresca took Cole Palmer off the field, a part of the fans simultaneously shouted: "You don't know what the hell you're doing, do you?
Optimistic fans can compare the current situation with the time Thomas Tuchel replaced Frank Lampard in January 2021, after which Chelsea overcame all storms and won the Champions League at the end of the season. However, the squad at that time possessed many experienced players such as Cesar Azpilicueta, N'Golo Kante, Antonio Rudiger, Jorginho and Thiago Silva. This is the force that helps them have enough capacity to handle major changes. Thomas Tuchel himself is also talented when he reached the Champions League final 1 year earlier with PSG.
Chelsea will not have much time to prepare because the next match against Man City is right in front of their eyes. The goal of The Blues this season is to stabilize the squad and win a Champions League spot in hand. Their current rankings allow that goal to become a reality. Even if they win against Man City - the team that just drew with Sunderland, The Blues can be more solid in the Top 4 race.
Secondary arenas such as the League Cup (against Arsenal in the semi-finals) and the FA Cup (against Charlton Athletic) may be temporarily put aside when the preparation time for the new coach is not much. The immediate goal is not to lose in the Premier League and must win the last 2 matches of the Champions League qualifiers to secure a ticket to the round of 16, if they have to play in the play-offs, it will be extremely tiring.
With the team's declining results and form, plus Maresca's increasingly obvious dissatisfaction, perhaps leaving the 45-year-old coach at this time is the best thing. Chelsea should also do the same.
