According to an Italian newspaper, Leicester are preparing a move for Maurizio Sarri. According to Italian journalist Alfredo Pedulla, Leicester City are trying to replace Enzo Maresca with Maurizio Sarri. According to Sky Sports, Maresca has accepted terms with Chelsea and is set to sign a five-year contract, leaving the Foxes in need of a new manager following their promotion to the Premier League. The 44-year-old Italian led the East Midlands club to the Championship title at the first attempt, winning 97 points, but will not continue his tenure at the King Power Stadium into the top tier.
However, Sarri would be an interesting choice, as his managerial record suggests he has what it takes to retain the Foxes in the Premier League. Leicester City put Maurizio Sarri on their managerial radar. Although the Foxes have been promoted back to the Premier League, Sarri is unquestionably an ambitious aim for the club to pursue. Most recently, the 65-year-old coached Serie A club Lazio, which he joined in June 2021, but quit in March after a run of five losses in six games.
In addition to Lazio, Sarri has previously led Juventus and Napoli in the Italian top flight, from 2019 to 2020 and 2015 to 2018. He demonstrated his management abilities by winning the 2019/20 Scudetto with Juve, but, perhaps ironically, he pushed the Serie A title battle to the wire in 2017/18 when in charge of Napoli, losing to his future team by four points. In addition to his Italian honors, Sarri has Premier League experience, having led Chelsea throughout the 2018/19 season, where the club finished third in the top level.
He also won the 2019 UEFA Europa League title with the Blues, who defeated Arsenal 4-1 in Baku with to goals from Olivier Giroud, Pedro, and an Eden Hazard brace. Leicester’s finances could prevent Sarri’s appointment. With experience managing some of Europe’s best clubs, the Italian is anticipated to have high pay demands that may be incompatible with the Foxes’ current financial predicament. According to the Telegraph, Leicester may face a points reduction of “anything between six and 15 points” as a result of financial infractions.
A 15-point deduction would be a Premier League record, following Everton’s 10-point penalty last season, which was then lowered to six points before the Toffees were hit with an additional two points. Even for a manager with Sarri’s skill set, maintaining a newly promoted side in the top flight with a 15-point suspension would be nearly hard, therefore the Foxes must pray that this situation does not occur. Back in April, the club stated that they would incur financial losses of £89.7 million during the 2022/23 Premier League season, following record losses of £92.5 million the year before.
After such significant financial losses, it seems unlikely that the Foxes will be able to meet the wage demands of a well-known manager like Sarri. However, according to The Mirror, Chelsea have paid the Foxes a £10 million compensation fee for Maresca’s services, which would help to mitigate the cost impact of selecting Sarri if he is their man.
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