Enzo Maresca is currently coaching Liam Delap at Stamford Bridge with Chelsea, but the duo previously enjoyed huge success at Manchester City.
Blues head coach Enzo Maresca, 45, added to the squad over the summer by signing Liam Delap from Ipswich Town. It is a huge positive that he knows the 22-year-old striker well after managing him in the Man City academy as a youngster.
Even though Delap’s hamstring injury means he’s missing several months in the first half of the 2025-26 season, we’re confident he will come back stronger, especially because he previously thrived under Maresca.
Appearances Goals Assists
22 27 6
Liam Delap’s record for Manchester City Under-21s under Enzo Maresca via Transfermarkt
Chelsea's Liam Delap and Enzo Maresca at the Club World Cup.
Photo by FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images
What Pep Guardiola said about Enzo Maresca and Liam Delap in 2022
Man City boss Pep Guardiola, who’s been at the Etihad Stadium since 2016, once made an intriguing comment about Maresca and Delap.
In 2022, Guardiola explained that the young centre-forward took giant strides forward in his game under Maresca’s tutelage. If we skip to the modern day, Chelsea supporters should be confident that history can now repeat itself at Stamford Bridge.
Speaking in February 2022, Guardiola said via The Telegraph: “Liam last season grew up a lot, especially with (academy head) Enzo Maresca. He helped him a lot to develop. He’s a type of striker that we don’t have. He’s a killer, a typical British striker, an incredible finisher.”
Delap, who took the No.9 shirt at Chelsea, was very unfortunate to pick up a significant injury so early in the season. However, based on his profile and his performances at the Club World Cup, he could be exactly what is needed to spearhead the attack with his aggression and goalscoring instincts.
In Maresca’s system, Delap leading the line would be the perfect foil for the likes of Joao Pedro and Cole Palmer to operate in the pockets of space behind him.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola during the Premier League match against Brentford.
Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images
Chelsea’s top performers under Enzo Maresca
If we look at the first 15 months of Maresca’s reign at Chelsea, the obvious standout players in the squad include Moises Caicedo, Cole Palmer and Marc Cucurella. The same goes for Levi Colwill, whose long-term injury is devastating.
The aim during his second season in charge is to successfully integrate the likes of Estevao Willian and Joao Pedro into the team.
It feels like there are still a lot of question marks around Chelsea’s attack right now, which isn’t helped by so many injuries to key players. Once everyone is fit, we wouldn’t be surprised to see former Man City talents Delap and Palmer feature heavily.