How would Manchester City line up under Maresca? | OneFootball

Max Parrott, Analytical football journalist

Enzo Maresca has appeared even more likely to inherit Pep Guardiola’s former hotseat at Manchester City as the six-time winners remain in talks with Chelsea over a compensatory package.

The talks have thus far stalled the Italian’s appointment that many fans anticipated would have already been completed, as the club lingers in uncertainty with the likes of captain Rodri waiting until after the World Cup to decide his future.

A verbal agreement is reportedly in place for the Italian manager who is set to join on an initial three-year contract, after he was let go by Chelsea on new year’s day following his relationship with Chelsea officials breaking down.

Appointing a former City assistant manager, even one present during the treble season, represents a highly calculated risk.

Here, FromTheSpot analyses how Maresca could choose to set up his hypothetical Manchester City team and which players are most likely to play prominent roles at the dawn of a new era for the six-time winners.

What is Maresca’s style of football?

Maresca led Man City’s U23 team to a Premier League 2 title during the 2020-21 season, building upon the City ethos of positional play. Though at Parma, his first managerial job, he struggled.

His complex, demanding system required specific player profiles, something rarely afforded in the volatile environment of Italian football.

Post-treble, he joined Leicester City and implemented a suffocating, possession-heavy system, averaging 61.6% possession across the season, utilising build-up structures to dominate opponents.

They won 13 of their opening 14 Championship matches and were instantly promoted with 97 points. This success attracted the West London giants, Chelsea, and he was taken from the Foxes ahead of the 2024-25 season.

Maresca’s eighteen months in charge of Chelsea were a rollercoaster that proved his capabilities at an elite club. He orchestrated a remarkable resurgence on the international stage, guiding Chelsea to a UEFA Conference League title and then securing the prestigious 2025 FIFA Club World Cup trophy, beating the European champions PSG 3-0 in the final.

Domestically, his attacking system unlocked the potential of creative forces like Cole Palmer and Enzo Fernandez, culminating in a fourth-place Premier League finish in his first season.

Maresca operates with a certain dogmatic rigidity, famously likening his managerial craft to chess: “Develop a plan, study countermoves, choose the arrangement of the pieces.” This methodology manifests in a heavily orchestrated team shape where players must adhere to their designated stations.

His teams move up the pitch as a slow-paced unit to sustain pressure and safeguard against defensive transitions. However, this level of control often invites predictability; rival analysts soon discovered that a disciplined, low-block defence could stifle Maresca’s Chelsea, which lacked the answers required to dismantle a settled opponent.

How Maresca’s Chelsea tactics will translate

At Chelsea, Maresca’s build-up begins with the deepest player on the pitch. In the low build-up phase, the goalkeeper is instructed to step forward into the defensive line, effectively acting as a third centre-back.

During Maresca’s tenure at Chelsea, this was a persistent challenge for him. It will be fascinating to see how he adapts at City with Donnarumma – a world-class shot-stopper who is notoriously uncomfortable with the ball at his feet.

Patience is a huge marker of his philosophy, with his back three instructed to be incredibly calm on the ball, often standing completely still to bait the opposition into pressing.

Once the pressing trap is sprung, City will look to exploit the space left behind.

This positional role of the goalkeeper allows centre-backs to split wide and enables the full-backs to push higher up the pitch. The objective is to utilise the goalkeeper, the defenders, and the dropping midfielders to bypass the opposition’s initial pressing shape through precise, short passing sequences.

As the ball progresses forward, the structure morphs into a 3-2-4-1 with the fullback inverting into the centre. At Chelsea, this was Malo Gusto – at City, it will be Nico O’Reilly.

The deployment of a double pivot facilitates central overloads, establishing a numerical advantage that in turn makes opposition pressing traps increasingly futile.

By securing the core of the pitch, the two advanced playmakers are liberated from deep build-up duties, instead pushing high to occupy the strategically vital half-spaces between the lines.

This concentration of central density inevitably forces the defensive block to narrow, a tactical compression that leaves the wingers isolated in highly advantageous 1v1 situations along the flanks.

Once in a 3-2-5 structure in the opponent’s territory, Maresca’s offence revolves around third-man combinations to free players in high-value zones. This requires precise timing and fast ball movement.

At Chelsea, a common pattern saw the double pivot find Cole Palmer or Enzo Fernández in the half-spaces. They would quickly spread play to the winger, drawing out the opposition’s full-back.

The playmaker then made an underlapping run into that vacated space for a return pass, disorganising the defence to create high-probability cut-back opportunities. The objective is to create a passing possibility for a third player coming from behind or making the forward run into space after unlocking that area.

Executing this demanding system requires high-quality players – something City possess.

Maresca’s possible tactics as Man City boss

Enzo Maresca’s Manchester City tactical arrangement will start with a 4-3-3 that will evolve into a 3-2-5 build-up structure in possession. At the base, Gianluigi Donnarumma joins the defensive line to form a temporary back three, facilitating the ball to the double pivot of Rodri and O’Reilly.

The defensive unit features Marc Guéhi as the central linchpin responsible for managing wide transitions and the vast spaces left behind the advanced line. Nico O’Reilly plays a crucial role as an inverted left-back, moving centrally to partner Rodri and create numerical overloads.

The offensive system relies on central density to isolate wingers like Jeremy Doku and Antoine Semenyo for 1v1 situations. Advanced playmakers, including Rayan Cherki and transfer target Elliot Anderson, occupy the half-spaces to execute underlapping runs and orchestrate vertical passing sequences.

At the front, Erling Haaland serves as a physical pinning mechanism, occupying centre-backs to create space for others while remaining the primary beneficiary of cut-backs or crosses.

Maresca’s managerial career so far has required adapting his complex system to varying levels of squad capability. At Manchester City, he inherits arguably the highest quality group of players in world football.

Guardiola, who was obsessed with control, is now being replaced by a manager who demands absolute structural compliance, and with 20 trophies won during his decade at Manchester City it’s safe to say it was mighty effective.

Will the pressure of replacing Guardiola become too much for the Italian, or will his new plan with the perfect players come to life at the Etihad next season? Only time will tell, and that starts with his seemingly inevitable appointment.