Enzo Maresca, the assistant coach for Manchester City and part of the team’s treble victory, is set to become the new manager for Leicester City, succeeding interim manager Dean Smith. The 43-year-old Italian’s appointment could be announced as soon as Friday, a mere six days after Manchester City’s Champions League win.
Dean Smith, who oversaw only two wins from eight games, stepped in as temporary boss in an unsuccessful bid to keep the Foxes in the Premier League following the dismissal of Brendan Rodgers in April. Rodgers had been in charge for four years.
Maresca’s transition to King Power Stadium concludes a prosperous year as part of Pep Guardiola’s coaching team in his second term as a coach for Manchester City. His previous position was as the boss of the Under-23s team. In 2021, Maresca experienced a challenging 180-day tenure as Parma’s boss, securing only four victories from 14 games following the club’s demotion from Serie A.
Leicester City returns to the Championship after a decade, concluding a disastrous season that placed them 18th in the Premier League with a meagre nine wins. This relegation marks a low point for the club following a decade of unprecedented success, including an unlikely Premier League victory, reaching the quarter-finals of the Champions League, winning the FA Cup, and making the semi-finals of a European competition for the first time in 2022.
Maresca’s career in English football spans a considerable period, with an impressive playing and coaching track record. The Italian began his career as a teenage midfielder with West Bromwich Albion before moving to Juventus. He had numerous loan spells and then moved to Spain to play for Sevilla, where he won five trophies. Maresca has also played for Olympiakos in Greece, Malaga in Spain, and ended his playing career in Italy with Hellas Verona in 2017.
His diverse coaching journey started as an assistant manager at Ascoli, then Sevilla, and later as West Ham’s assistant manager under Manuel Pellegrini. Although his stint as a first-team manager at Parma was challenging, his work with Guardiola significantly contributed to Manchester City’s Premier League, FA Cup, and Champions League triumphs.
