Chelsea confirmed the arrival of Enzo Maresca as their new boss this week
Enzo Maresca is the new Chelsea boss(Image credit: Getty Images)
Enzo Maresca was confirmed as the new Chelsea boss on Monday and the Italian appears to be ready to shake up the squad in order to bring in new faces.
The Blues have handed the former Leicester City boss a five-year contract at Stamford Bridge, following last month’s departure of Mauricio Pochettino, who led the club to a sixth-place finish before departing after just a single season in charge.
Maresca, who won the Championship with the Foxes this season and served as Pep Guardiola’s assistant during Manchester City’s treble-winning campaign 12 months earlier, is now getting to work on reshaping Chelsea’s expensively-assembled squad.
Chelsea defender Benoit Badiashile (Image credit: Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
According to Teamtalk, Maresca is ready to sell four players for a combined £145million in order to free up funds for new signings.
Defender Benoit Badiashile could be the first to go after failing to live up to expectations following his £33million move from Monaco in January 2023, with AC MIlan said to be interested in the 23-year-old.
The report adds that Maresca is happy to let goalkeeper Robert Sanchez leave, as the 44-year-old wants to sign a stopper who is better with his feet. Sanchez was a £25million signing last summer and is believed to have suitors in the Premier League and in Spain.
Another expendable player is said to be Marc Cucurella, who joined from Brighton in a £60millio deal last summer, but has also failed to live up to his pricetag. Manchester United and Aston Villa have been linked with the 25-year-old.
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Marc Cucurella of Chelsea (Image credit: Getty Images)
Finally, centre-back Trevoh Chalobah could also be sacrificed. Given that the 24-year-old is a product of the Blues’ academy, any fee for him would go down as pure profit, again boosting Maresca’s transfer kitty.
Manchester United have been linked with a £25million move for the England under-21 international and should this quartet all fetch the fees Chelsea are looking for, the club could bank £145million.
For more than a decade Joe Mewis has worked in football journalism as a reporter and editor, with stints at Mirror Football and LeedsLive among others. He is the author of four football history books that include times on Leeds United and the England national team.
