Leicester City are on the lookout for a new head coach following Enzo Maresca’s departure to Premier League giants Chelsea this week but have set their sights on another Italian coach, according to reports.
The Foxes were relegated from the Premier League last season in unprecedented fashion and the board took a risk by appointing Maresca, whose only prior job as a head coach ended rather disappointingly with an unsuccessful stint at Parma in Serie B.
Maresca had recently been the assistant coach to Pep Guardiola at Manchester City last season as the Citizens lifted the treble, the first time a side in English football had achieved this feat since Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United in 1999.
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Nevertheless, the decision to name Guardiola’s number ‘2’ as the main man at the King Power Stadium proved to be correct. Maresca guided Leicester City to promotion at the first time of asking, playing some scintillating football along the way while lifting the Championship title in the process.
As a result, the 44-year-old was poached by Chelsea following Mauricio Pochettino’s recent departure from Stamford Bridge, leaving the Foxes without a head coach before the transfer window opens up in less than two weeks.
Now, the hierarchy are scouting the market to find a replacement for Maresca and are eyeing up another Italian appointment. According to Alfredo Pedulla, via Get Football News Italy, Leicester are interested in bringing Maurizio Sarri to the club and have made a thorough enquiry for the ex-Chelsea, Juventus and Napoli boss who was relieved from his duties at Lazio back in March.
Sarri only managed for one season in English football during the 2018/19 campaign with the Blues in which he guided the side to third in the Premier League and won the UEFA Europa League final in Baku against bitter rivals Arsenal. In the meantime, he boasted a 63% win ratio throughout his ten months at Stamford Bridge.
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Coincidentally, the last time Sarri was in England, his Chelsea team failed to beat Leicester City across two games. The Foxes won 1-0 at Stamford Bridge through a second-half Jamie Vardy strike before earning a goalless draw at home in the reverse fixture.
The 65-year-old has plenty of experience in football managing big clubs and plays a similar style of football to Maresca. While he has often proven to be a rather confrontational and controversial figure during his managerial career, one could argue that Sarri could take Leicester back to the heights they soared a few seasons ago.
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