Manchester City pay Chelsea £17m in compensation and confirm Enzo Maresca as manager
Enzo Maresca has been confirmed as Manchester City’s new manager, replacing Pep Guardiola on a three-year contract
Enzo Maresca has been confirmed as Manchester City’s manager on a three-year contract, the Italian returning to the club where he worked as an assistant to Pep Guardiola for 12 months. City have paid Chelsea £17m in compensation for their former head coach and Maresca also agreed a personal settlement with the west London club and apologised for the impact of his departure at the start of the year.
Maresca has been expected to take over from Guardiola ever since the Spaniard confirmed he would be leaving City but lengthy negotiations were held over recompense Chelsea felt they were due.
Chelsea say Maresca notified them of the potential opportunity to replace Guardiola at the end of the 2024-25 season and it was clear he wanted to pursue this, with the club claiming his resignation at the turn of the year “was a major contributing factor” to their poor campaign. Maresca said: “I recognise that my departure from Chelsea in the middle of the season caused disruption for the club and I apologise for that. It was neither my intention nor my wish.”
A Chelsea statement read: “No club wants to change its head coach midway through a season. In the circumstances and given the mutual respect between clubs, a confidential settlement has been reached with Manchester City, which includes the payment of compensation. A confidential settlement has also been reached with the former head coach under which he will pay compensation.”
Guardiola’s 10-year spell saw the club win 20 major trophies, including six Premier League titles and the Champions League as part of the 2022-23 treble. Maresca was part of Guardiola’s coaching staff in that campaign where all of league, FA Cup and Champions League were won. City tracked Maresca’s progress in his future roles at Leicester and Chelsea, seeing his style of play aligned with what the club wanted when Guardiola left, making him their No 1 target, and to ensure he has the character required to follow in the footsteps of one of the great Premier League coaches.
“Manchester City is a club I know very well and to have the chance to manage this team is a brilliant opportunity for me,” Maresca said. “City is an incredibly well-run football club. Everything they do is innovative, planned and purposeful. For a manager, that is a dream situation. It provides the consistency I need to do my job effectively.
“This will be my third spell here. I know this club, I know the demands and I know the expectations. The quality of the people who work here is what makes it so special, and I want to thank them for showing faith in my ability. I cannot wait to start coaching the players. I want us to win, play good football and enjoy the pressure of representing Manchester City.”
The Italian took charge of Leicester in June 2023 and subsequently led them to promotion to the Premier League at the first time of asking, which in turn landed him the head coach role at Chelsea. Maresca led the London club to victory in the Conference League and the inaugural Club World Cup in 2025 and appeared set for a prolonged period of success at Stamford Bridge before a falling-out with the hierarchy led to his sudden departure on 1 January. It was reported at the time that a parting of the ways occurred after Maresca informed Chelsea he had held talks with figures associated with City over replacing Guardiola.
In the Guardian app, tap the Profile settings button at the top right, then select Notifications. Turn on sport notifications.
If you already have the Guardian app, make sure you’re on the most recent version.
If you don't have the Guardian app, download it from the iOS App Store on iPhone or the Google Play store on Android by searching for 'The Guardian'.
Maresca takes charge of a City side that have gone two seasons without a Premier League title and have just lost Bernardo Silva and John Stones. Nonetheless, the squad is in healthy shape and Elliot Anderson’s £116m move from Nottingham Forest is to be confirmed in the near future.
The City chair, Khaldoon al-Mubarak, said: “Enzo is someone who has always sought out opportunities to challenge himself and succeed in his managerial career. He brings a personality, passion and intelligence completely aligned to our needs.
“Enzo inherits a squad and football organisation perfectly suited to reflect and evolve his brand of football, and we are all very much looking forward to seeing the impact he can have in building further on the club’s success.”
Maresca will first take charge of City on Saturday 1 August when they face Internazionale at the start of a pre-season tour in South Korea. His first major game in the City dugout will be the Community Shield at Wembley on Sunday 16 August against Arsenal, before starting the league season at home to Bournemouth the following weekend.