The 2024-25 campaign went as well as a season could for Enzo Maresca in his first year as Chelsea manager. The Blues finished fourth and qualified for the Champions League, and also won multiple trophies. First, it was the Europa Conference League, and then they won the first-ever FIFA Club World Cup over the recent Champions League winners PSG. Despite the recent success, year two at Stamford Bridge is even more important for the Italian than his debut season in charge.
Job security for managers at Chelsea has always been a topic of conversation, going back to Roman Abramovich's days. Under Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali’s ownership, the Blues have already had six people manage games in three years.
It would be easy to say that this time, they have finally found someone who looks like he can be the man in charge for years to come. But recent history would tell you otherwise.
Maresca has a lot to prove at Chelsea this season
Chelsea have had managers who achieved great things in their first year, only to be out of a job in the blink of an eye. Thomas Tuchel took over for Frank Lampard in the middle of the 2020-21 season and guided the Blues to a Champions League title, a top-four finish in the Premier League, and an appearance in the FA Cup final. A little over a season later, he was gone.
Before Tuchel, it was Chelsea's legendary midfielder Frank Lampard who returned to become the manager of the club in 2019 in a period of transition. The Blues just came off one year with Maurizio Sarri, who helped them win the Europa League, but was leaving, as was superstar Eden Hazard, who departed to Real Madrid. In addition to all that, the club were handed a transfer ban by UEFA.
With all of this happening, Lampard managed to guide Chelsea to a fourth-place finish, a spot in the Champions League, and runners-up for the FA Cup. The next season, Chelsea were able to open up their chequebooks and sign a bunch of players. Kai Havertz, Timo Werner, Thiago Silva, Ben Chilwell, and Hakim Ziyech, to name a few. Despite a strong start to his sophomore season in charge, things went downhill fast as the Blues had won just two of their last eight matches in his charge and dropped to ninth in the table. This resulted in Lampard getting sacked and Tuchel taking over.
These situations are similar to what Maresca experienced in his first season as the manager of Chelsea. Now, expectations are going to be raised even higher after slightly overachieving with a fourth-place finish and multiple trophies. The transfer spree from the board has continued over the summer. Players like Joao Pedro from Brighton & Hove Albion, Jamie Gittens from Borussia Dortmund, Liam Delap from Ipswich Town, and Jorrel Hato from Ajax have been brought in. On top of that, they’ve also welcomed Estevao from Palmeiras.
Despite these squad improvements, other teams in the top four have also gotten better. Fresh off winning the Premier League, Liverpool made a big splash signing Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen, and Hugo Ekitike from Eintracht Frankfurt. They are also looking to add Alexander Isak to that roster. Manchester City have signed James Trafford, Rayan Cherki, Rayan Ait-Nouri, and Tijjani Reijnders. Arsenal went out and got prolific striker Viktor Gyokeres, Chelsea winger Noni Madueke, and Martin Zubimendi.
All three teams will certainly be an obstacle in Chelsea’s way, but with improvements to the squad and another season under Maresca, the goal should only be to get better. Last season was about qualifying for the Champions League; this season, it’s about impressing in Europe's top competitions, advancing far in domestic tournaments, and being a serious contender to win the Premier League.