Chelsea are ready to complete the appointment of Enzo Maresca within the next 24 hours after agreeing a £10m compensation deal with Leicester City.
Maresca will put the finishing touches on a five-year contract on Wednesday before being confirmed as Chelsea’s sixth permanent manager in the last five years.
The 44-year-old Italian is currently on holiday in Marbella and spent most of Tuesday speaking to Chelsea sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart as he outlined his plans for the future.
Winstanley and Stewart flew to the Costa del Sol to complete an appointment that the Chelsea hierarchy consider a significant and emotional coup in their journey.
Maresca is already discussing potential transfer targets and will prioritize a new goalkeeper, left-back and striker when the summer window opens.
Chelsea are determined to respect Leicester during negotiations and will pay a compensation package that could reach just over £10m as it includes Maresca and five backroom staff.
Former Chelsea goalkeeper and assistant coach Willy Caballero, coach Danny Walker, goalkeeping coach Michele de Bernardin, fitness coach Marcos Alvarez and first-team analyst Javier Molina Caballero are set to join Maresca at Stamford Bridge.
Maresca will leave Leicester after just one full season in charge, which ended with the club winning the championship title.
The former midfielder is considered perfect by Chelsea’s owners, with the club keen to find a coach who can develop a possession-based style with a focus on positional play.
Chelsea have already agreed an initial fee of £29.15m for Brazilian teenager Estevão Willian. The winger, nicknamed ‘Messinho’, is considered one of the best young talents in South America.
Players are also expected to leave in the coming months, with England international Conor Gallagher a target for Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa.
Chelsea will listen to offers from several other local players, including Trevoh Chalobah and Armando Broja. Ian Maatsen, the defender currently on loan at Champions League finalists Borussia Dortmund, is also expected to leave the club permanently this summer.
Non-international players return to pre-season training at the start of July and the plan was to have a new coach in place long before then, following Mauricio Pochettino’s departure by mutual consent last week.
