Maresca at risk of Chelsea sack if poor run persists with a dry January

Chelsea have one win from their past seven league games and although Maresca is set to be in charge for Sunday’s trip to Manchester City his position is increasingly uncertain.

Wed, 31 Dec, 2025 - 21:11

Jacob Steinberg

Enzo Maresca will be in danger of losing his job as Chelsea’s head coach if he cannot improve results before the end of January. The Italian, who was booed by home supporters during the disappointing 2-2 draw with Bournemouth at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday, is under mounting pressure after a poor run of form, and a series of self-inflicted wounds have raised doubts over his position.

Chelsea have one win from their past seven league games and although Maresca is set to be in charge for Sunday’s trip to Manchester City his position is increasingly uncertain. Concern over the 45-year-old’s decisions during games and away from the pitch have grown in recent weeks and there can be no guarantee that Maresca will survive beyond the end of January if he proves incapable of reversing the slump.

The situation has felt unpredictable ever since the former Leicester manager, whose side have dropped 15 points from winning positions in the league this season, made cryptic comments about experiencing his “worst 48 hours” at the club after this month’s victory over Everton.

Those remarks left Chelsea baffled and have placed a strain on Maresca’s relationship with his bosses. It has not helped that Maresca has repeatedly refused to explain what he meant when he said that “many people” were not supporting him before the Everton game. Whispers about problems behind the scenes have inevitably intensified.

Chelsea, who have dropped into fifth place in the Premier League, do not want volatility and there is a reluctance to make mid-season managerial changes. The memory of sacking Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter during the first season of the Todd Boehly-Clearlake Capital ownership remains prominent. The board’s preference is to wait until the end of the season before reviewing Maresca. The signs have pointed to a summer departure until now.

Maresca, who did not feel well enough to speak to the media after the Bournemouth game, was in a relatively strong position when Chelsea beat Barcelona 3-0 in the Champions League and held Arsenal to a 1-1 draw at the end of November. But the outlook changed during a troubled December. Maresca’s substitutions and tactics came under scrutiny during defeats by Leeds, Atalanta and Aston Villa, while his behaviour has caused internal tension.

There is a feeling that Maresca has put himself in unnecessary trouble with his “worst 48 hours” comments. Maresca has been touted as a potential candidate for City, should Pep Guardiola leave at the end of the season. There have been suggestions that he wants more power at Chelsea but they are not willing to alter a structure that has seen them build an extensive recruitment team and focus on signing some of the best young talent in the game.

Chelsea have nine fixtures to navigate in January. A draining run features five league games, an FA Cup tie against Charlton, the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final against Arsenal and Champions League group games against Pafos and Napoli. The workload means stability is the preference. However, Chelsea have inevitably drawn up contingency plans and there will come a point when they have to act. They will not tolerate the poor run continuing.

One possible solution for Chelsea would be to appoint Liam Rosenior, who manages their partner club Strasbourg. However, Rosenior is inexperienced and it would disrupt Strasbourg’s season for him to move now.

The hope will be that Maresca can turn the situation around. Chelsea were bold in replacing Mauricio Pochettino with him 18 months ago. Last season Maresca qualified for the Champions League and won the Conference League and the Club World Cup. Chelsea have backed him during previous difficult spells but their patience is now being tested.

There is acknowledgment that Maresca has had to cope without Levi Colwill and Cole Palmer for much of his second season in charge. However, it was not encouraging when fans responded to Maresca substituting Palmer against Bournemouth by booing and chanting: “You don’t know what you’re doing.”

The Guardian