What is the expectation from Chelsea and Enzo Maresca next season? After a wonderful work last season, Enzo Maresca enters the second year of his reign at Stamford Bridge with bigger expectations and demands. The targets for the 2024-25 season were met, but the stakes are even higher for next season. Chelsea will enter the 2025/26 season with the same management.
The Blues made a strong start to the league campaign last season before a run of inconsistent results derailed their superb run. None of that will be tolerated in the coming campaign. This particular chapter at Stamford Bridge demands stability, results, and a clearer identity on the pitch.
Getting Chelsea tickets for the 2025-26 season on time is important.
The main target in the previous campaign was to return to the biggest club competition in Europe – the UEFA Champions League. Having achieved that, Maresca will be keen to challenge for more honours and keep improving the squad.
After the season came to an end, defender Marc Cucurella knew how important it was to achieve the set objectives, and its relevance to the work the club is doing.
‘This season has been very good,’ enthused the Spaniard.
‘The most important thing is that we have achieved the objectives at the beginning of the season, so it’s a big season for us.
‘We have started building something important. We have been together now for a couple of years, so hopefully it’s just the beginning and we can achieve something important.’
On his part, Maresca could not hide his joy following the completion of the 2024-25 Premier League season.
“Very happy, ” Maresca responded to a question on Chelsea meeting their set target.
“I’m very happy for many reasons. First of all, because I think the players deserve it. Since day one they have been working very, very hard. With the club, with the owners, with the sporting directors, the players, we all go in the same direction. And I said many times during the season that the noise was more from outside than from inside.
“Very proud because, first of all, because of the players. I feel part of their improvement, the way they grew through the season, and I feel especially proud for that because they are a fantastic group, a fantastic squad. They are good boys, they work hard, they try to help each other. And I said, probably most of the time, I was from outside, that we were not good enough, we were too young, we don’t have a leader, blah, blah, blah, these kind of things. But at the end, it all comes from results,” Maresca concluded.
Under Todd Boehly’s ownership group, Chelsea have spent over £1 billion since 2022 on player recruitment, making Chelsea one of the most expensive squads in Europe. Yet, the team has underachieved. However, the 2024-25 season brought some rewards, and that has given Maresca another shot at some big prizes on offer in the coming season.
For Maresca, the first expectation will be to bring some consistency. Chelsea’s form last season was like a rollercoaster — excellent one week, dismal the next. The Blues were decent in the early stages of the season, before falling away, and eventually getting back on track to take one of the Champions League spots.
In terms of comparison to the 2023-24 season, Chelsea finished the season in fourth place with 69 points, as against the 63 points in the previous campaign. Although they scored fewer goals in the 2023-24 season, Chelsea conceded 20 fewer goals less an improvement in the backline. But there’s still plenty of work to be done.
Cole Palmer’s emergence was one of the few positives from Pochettino’s time, and he continued that same way under Maresca. Having now taken the number 10 shirt, it is safe to say he is ready for more responsibilities at the club. Palmer delivered 42 goal contributions in all competitions in his first season for the Blues, while he delivered 27 goal contributions last season. There might have been a reduction in terms of output, but he remains the creative hub of the team.
Despite conceding 43 goals in the Premier League last season, Chelsea were the third-best defence in the league. Although it is also an improvement from the previous season, improvements will still be expected in the 2025-26 season. Maresca is expected to enforce more defensive discipline.
Following their Conference League win, Chelsea became the first English side to win all four major European trophies — including the now defunct Cup Winners’ Cup.
“To be the first club to have won everything possible, you can see the fans celebrating now and it shows how much it means to them,” Chelsea defender Levi Colwill said after the win over Real Betis.
“We knew they [Betis] were going to be a good team, especially at the start with their fans pushing them on, but we knew it was going to die off.
“We just had to wait and pick our moments and that is what we did in the second half.”
Regardless of the project, trophies are important. Chelsea, in one of their worst eras as a club, won a European trophy. It is a thing of pride for the players, and then the fans, most especially. As a serial winning club, Chelsea will not stop there, and that comes the next expectation.
Chelsea will play in the Champions League next season. They will not be favourites when the competition gets underway, but many fans and even the management will be expecting a deep run at least. In the Premier League, the Blues might not have the squad to compete for the title yet, but a return to the UCL is important. In the other cup competitions, any win in either of them will be highly regarded.
Another expectation is squad trimming. Chelsea have too many players, and it has caused problems with selection and cohesion. They will be playing in the Champions League this time around, so Maresca cannot afford to rotate like he was doing in the Conference League last season.
Enzo Maresca may be unproven at this level, but Chelsea have placed their trust in his ideas. He delivered the elusive UCL ticket last season, but it remains to be seen if he can take the Blues to the next level.