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Manchester City have officially announced the signing of Enzo Maresca as their new manager, following a contentious exit from Chelsea in January that left the London club visibly frustrated.
City and Chelsea spent several weeks in drawn-out negotiations regarding compensation for Maresca, who stepped down as Chelsea boss on New Year's Day after holding discussions with his prospective new club about potentially taking over from Pep Guardiola.
"In Autumn last year, the Club was informed by our former Head Coach that there might be an opportunity for him to succeed Pep Guardiola at the end of the season," a Chelsea statement read.
"It became clear to us that it was his strong desire to succeed Guardiola and that he was fully committed to pursuing the opportunity, despite the fact he was under a long-term contract which he had no right to terminate.
"In December 2025, our Head Coach unexpectedly and abruptly resigned from his position. Obviously, we felt let down as we believed that his head and heart were focused on another club and another opportunity, despite having just arrived at Chelsea the year before.
"No club wants to change its head coach midway through a season. However, in light of his decision not to continue fulfilling his responsibilities through to the end of the season, the Club was left with no choice but to protect our players, our supporters, and the Badge and accept his resignation.
"In the circumstances and given the mutual respect between clubs, a confidential settlement has been reached with Manchester City, which includes the payment of compensation. A confidential settlement has also been reached with the former Head Coach under which he will pay compensation.
"Looking ahead to next season, in Xabi Alonso, we have a Manager who possesses an outstanding football mind and carries himself with the utmost professionalism. He has every quality needed to bring the success that the Club's supporters deserve and anticipate."
Maresca Explains Nature of Chelsea Departure
Maresca's departure from Chelsea came as a major shock amid widespread reports of internal unrest, and the Italian was prompt in offering an apology to his former club for the manner in which he left.
"At the end of December 2025, I made the difficult decision to leave Chelsea," he said. "The decision was mine alone. My resignation from Chelsea opened the door for me to join Manchester City, a club I know extremely well. I am thrilled to have now become part of Manchester City.
"I recognise that leaving Chelsea in the middle of the season caused disruption for the club and I apologize for that. It was never my intention or desire. I was treated with great respect by everyone at Chelsea and together we achieved tremendous success and created memories I will always hold dear.
"I am thankful to the club, the owners and the supporters for giving me that opportunity."
Man City Acknowledge When Contact Was Made
A City statement added: "We can confirm that private conversations took place between certain representatives of City and Enzo Maresca during the Autumn and Winter of 2025, while he was serving as Chelsea FC's Head Coach, regarding the possibility of him returning to City in a transitional head coaching role should Pep Guardiola choose to depart.
"We acknowledge Chelsea's statement regarding the circumstances surrounding Enzo's exit from Chelsea. We also recognise the context in which permission for those discussions was granted, and we accept that his mid-season departure was disruptive to Chelsea's campaign.
SI answers is our AI answer engine trained on human-created content.
"Once terms were agreed with Enzo Maresca, Manchester City and Chelsea FC arrived at a mutually agreed settlement under which Chelsea FC will receive financial compensation."
Maresca has put pen to paper on a three-year deal at City and will kick off his reign in the Community Shield against Arsenal on August 16, with an uncomfortable reunion against Chelsea pencilled in for December.