Enzo Maresca sends 'domination' warning to Chelsea's rivals as squad claim made ahead of Arsenal

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has fired a warning to their Premier League rivals as he believes the team will dominate English football for a number of years.

It's been a turbulent couple of years for the London club after former owner Roman Abramovich was forced to sell the club to a US-based consortium - headed by Todd Boehly - due to sanctions following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. They have spent over £1billion on transfers since the takeover, and there have been four different permanent managers in the last two years.

Maresca succeeded Mauricio Pochettino at the end of last season following a successful spell at Leicester City, in which he guided the Foxes to a Championship title and secured promotion back into the Premier League. This season, Chelsea have won five of their opening 10 league matches, and a victory over Arsenal on Sunday would put them within seven points of current leaders Liverpool.

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Among the big-name signings of the last few years are Marc Cucurella, Mykhailo Mudryk, Enzo Fernandez, Christopher Nkunku, Moises Caicedo, Cole Palmer, Pedro Neto and Joao Felix. Caicedo is the most expensive incoming transfer to date under Boehly's ownership with a hefty £115m price-tag.

After Chelsea's positive start to the season, Maresca admitted it's an exciting time for the club. He also noted with the talent available, average age and the strength in depth, they have a squad capable of dominating the English game for a number of years.

“It's exciting," he said in an interview with Sky Sports. "The first time I met the club, I said, ‘No matter if l’m going to be the manager or not, for the next 5-10 years, because of the squad and age, you are [going to] dominate English football.”

While Chelsea sit comfortably in the top half of the Premier League table, they have also had a strong start in the UEFA Europa Conference League. Midweek, they beat Armenian side FC Noah 8-0 to claim top spot in the league phase of the competition.

However, things were less positive in the Carabao Cup as they were beaten 2-0 by Newcastle United in the round of 16 last month. An early exit from the competition is a significant blow given Chelsea have been in three of the last six finals.