Chelsea hold Enzo Maresca talks with Leicester as final decision on next manager close

Chelsea have held talks with Leicester City over an approach for manager Enzo Maresca, football.london understands.

The search for Mauricio Pochettino's replacement at Stamford Bridge is not yet done, but the Blues are understood to have done the most groundwork on a move for the man who earned promotion to the Premier League this season with Leicester.

There are still a number of candidates in the running to make the move to west London, with Roberto De Zerbi still in contention, along with Brentford boss Thomas Frank.

Chelsea mutually decided with Pochettino that his time at the club would come to an end after just one year, with the Blues securing a sixth-place finish in the Premier League but dropping into the Europa Conference League for next season following Manchester United's FA Cup win against Manchester City at the weekend.

It brought to an end a tumultuous time for the former Tottenham manager, with the club making a slew of signings and facing a poor run of injuries which saw plenty of disruption for Pochettino's side.

However, results in the first half of the season were poor for the Blues, with the club spending much of that time in the lower half of the Premier League table. Despite a turnaround in form after Christmas which saw only Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool record more points, the club parted ways with Pochettino.

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Chelsea's decision over who will guide the club now looks to be heading towards an end point six days after Pochettino's exit.

Maresca has guided Leicester City back to the Premier League from the Championship at the first time of asking. He was joined on the list of candidates linked to the role with Kieran McKenna, who has brought Ipswich Town from League One to the Premier League in the space of two years.

De Zerbi is also still in the frame following his exit from Brighton, while Frank's role in keeping Brentford in the top division since their promotion in 2021 has also earned him a place in the reckoning.