PA Media/dpa
London
Chelsea have the squad to dominate English football within the next decade following two ruthless years of player turnover, according to head coach Enzo Maresca.
Only three members of the first team remain at Stamford Bridge from the day owners Clearlake Capital bought the club in May 2022, with more than £1 billion ($1.3 billion) having been spent assembling a squad which - with an average age just under 24 - is the youngest in the Premier League.
The near-total overhaul was ridiculed initially as the 2021 Champions League winners slumped down the table. An inexperienced side appearing devoid of direction and leadership finished 12th in the league 18 months ago, with co-owner Todd Boehly describing the season as “embarrassing.” Yet the mood around the club has been transformed since the appointment of Maresca, who has built on work done by former boss Mauricio Pochettino to forge an exciting, energetic side that currently sits third, level with last season’s runners-up Arsenal.
“I still think what I said to the owners and sporting directors the first time I met them,” Maresca told a news conference on Tuesday ahead of Wednesday’s trip to bottom side Southampton.
“Because of the age and how good the squad is, Chelsea in the next five to 10 years will be one of the teams - or the team - that is going to dominate English football.”
Chelsea are nine points behind runaway league leaders Liverpool but joined Arsenal on 25 points with Sunday’s comprehensive rout of Aston Villa, with champions Manchester City two points behind them in fifth.
