Enzo Maresca is the new Manchester City manager, taking the reins from mentor and club legend Pep Guardiola after agreeing to compensate Chelsea for his move.
City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak said Maresca and the club are “in lockstep with ambition and hunger for achievement.”
MORE — Maresca apologies to Chelsea, who unleash furious statement
“Enzo inherits a squad and football organisation perfectly suited to reflect and evolve his brand of football,” Mubarak said. “We are all very much looking forward to seeing the impact he can have in building further on the Club’s success.”
Maresca will enter his third spell at City, having led Cole Palmer, Liam Delap, and Morgan Rogers to the Premier League title in 2020 before going to Serie B side Parma. He returned as Guardiola’s assistant in the Summer of 2022.
He brought Leicester into the Premier League in 2023-24 and was then hired by Chelsea before the 2024-25 season. Chelsea won the Conference League and the Club World Cup, but stepped down from the club on January 1, 2026 after conflicts over the club’s roster construction policy.
Enzo Maresca statement on joining Man City
“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, via mancity.com.
“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.”
How will Enzo Maresca change Manchester City?
Maresca is very much a Guardiola type, but it remains to be seen whether he keeps Man City in its unorthodox shape.
Presumably they’ll still be a back three in possession and a back four in defense, but it seems unlikely that Maresca would be the type to play fullbacks who are defensively less-than-ideal.
Maresca did a lot of 4-2-3-1 at Chelsea and with Rodri and (presumably) all-action Elliot Anderson he has a lot of fluidity in how he uses his wings and wing backs. Rodri’s entering the last year of his contract but it’s quite possible he plays it out.
MORE — World Cup team power rankings
We didn’t see Maresca’s Chelsea will lethal wings or a clinical forward. He’ll have that at Chelsea with Jeremy Doku, Rayan Cherki, and Antoine Semenyo flashing forward with Erling Haaland up top and both Nico O’Reilly and Phil Foden capable of pulling the strings. The depth with Omar Marmoush, Nico Gonzalez, and Tijjani Reijnders is nasty.
It’s going to look a bit more safer and stout but just as energetic going forward. That’s dangerous for the rest of the league.
Can Man City win Premier League in Maresca’s first season?
In short, yes — if there’s a quick adaptation in attitude and chemistry between the boss and his team.
An all-action midfielder like Anderson joining Rodri — presuming the midfielder stays at City — in the middle of the park would allow Maresca the opportunity to attack with vigor.
With Gvardiol returning to health, a back line of Gvardiol, Ruben Dias, Marc Guehi, and Rayan Ait-Nouri or Abdukodir Khusanov would be big both and forward-thinking.
The attack is already lethal.
Arsenal and Liverpool will be expected to return to the title discussion, but City are very capable of going for it all in Year One.
