Enzo Maresca has admitted that another unnamed Premier League club tried to hire him just before he signed for Chelsea.
Chelsea let Mauricio Pochettino go at the end of last season after a disappointing campaign where they finished sixth, despite going unbeaten in their last ten Premier League matches.
The ownership at the club, Clearlake Capital, eyed several candidates to replace the Argentine, including Ipswich Town boss Kieran McKenna and Stuttgart coach Sebastian Hoeness.
However, they eventually pinpointed Maresca as their main man after he led Leicester to the Championship title in his first campaign in charge at the King Power Stadium.
But the Italian was in high demand at the time and could have signed for another club had he not already given his word to Chelsea.
Maresca said another ‘important’ club chased his signature, saying: “They asked me, ‘Do we still have time or is it too late?’ But by then I was already taking my decision.”
The 44-year-old has walked into a club that has been fraught with change since the arrival of Clearlake Capital and is Chelsea’s sixth head coach since the takeover just two years ago.
However, Maresca believes he is the man to bring some stability to Stamford Bridge – and outlined his plan.
When Chelsea played Leicester last season in the FA Cup quarter-final, the Blues emerged victorious in a 4-2 win.
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But Maresca was shocked to see how Pochettino had set up his side and has moved to rectify his errors.
“I almost never saw man-to-man high pressing,” he told the Daily Mail.
“Since we started, we have decided to go man-to-man because it is our way; aggressive. It’s not only on the ball. It’s a big change.
“For me, the big difference between us and the teams that dominate – City and Arsenal – is that one club is with the same manager eight years and the other five years.
“We have had two or three weeks. I am 100 per cent sure we are on the right path.”
Chelsea got their first win under Maresca this week when they beat Club America 3-0 on Wednesday night while away on pre-season tour of the United States.
It follows a 1-1 draw against Wrexham and a 4-1 bashing at the hands of Celtic.
News Summary:
- Enzo Maresca says Premier League club made late swoop for him before he became Chelsea manager
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