Manchester City have reached a financial settlement with Chelsea over the appointment of Enzo Maresca as the club’s new manager, ending weeks of legal dispute between the two Premier League clubs over compensation.
According to reports from Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio, Chelsea and Manchester City have agreed on a compensation fee of approximately €20 million for the 46-year-old, with Maresca set to travel to Manchester in the coming hours to sign a three-year contract.
Maresca departed Chelsea on January 1, 2026, with approximately 3.5 years still remaining on his contract. He resigned without claiming severance, leaving Chelsea with the legal right to pursue compensation from City for his services.
The negotiations reportedly made substantial progress quickly, in part because Maresca was already contributing to Manchester City’s summer transfer planning even as the compensation figure remained unresolved. The final number landed at Chelsea’s headline demand of £17.2 million.
Chelsea essentially turned a profit on the entire Maresca transaction. When the club hired him from Leicester City in 2024, it paid roughly £8 million in compensation to the Foxes. Now, just two years later, Chelsea is collecting more than double that amount from Manchester City.
Maresca is widely expected to succeed Pep Guardiola, who has concluded his decade-long reign at the Etihad Stadium. The Italian previously served as Guardiola’s assistant coach during City’s treble-winning season in 2023, before going on to manage Chelsea.
City’s sporting director Hugo Viana, described as instrumental in driving the appointment, had identified Maresca as his number one managerial target as far back as January, and sources indicate there was never any serious consideration of walking away despite the weeks-long compensation standoff.
The breakthrough now clears Maresca to assume control at Manchester City in time for pre-season, allowing him to integrate arrivals before the Community Shield against Arsenal and the Premier League opener against Bournemouth.
