Pep Guardiola has transformed Man City into a European powerhouse - but hiring Enzo Maresca risks ruining legendary coach's promising rebuild

Legacy managers are a rare thing in the modern era, where hiring and firing in a self-contradictory quest for sustainable success is all the rage - but Guardiola has built a dynasty at the Etihad Stadium across a glittering decade at the club, and he will leave on his own terms.

After an inauspicious start that resulted in a third-placed finish in the Premier League in 2016-17, some 15 points behind champions Chelsea, his City side would go on to dominate the English top-flight. He now has eight domestic cups in his trophy cabinet, to boot.

Leaning on a core of world-class players down the years, including the likes of Vincent Kompany, David Silva, Sergio Aguero, Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva, Rodri and Erling Haaland, the Cityzens would claim the title in 2018 and 2019, before an unprecedented four in a row between 2021 and 2024.

The crowning moment of his tenure, though, undoubtedly arrived in 2023 as the club lifted it's maiden European Cup after downing Inter in the showpiece in Istanbul, capping a gilded campaign for Guardiola's juggernaut of a side as they completed a remarkable treble.

Before we scrutinise Maresca's arrival, it's worth pointing out the fact that replacing Guardiola is an unenviable task for City's decision-makers; in fact, it's nigh-on impossible. The Catalan tactician has been universally hailed as a 'genius' since the news of his imminent departure seeped out into the open on Monday, and rightly so - there will never be another coach like him.

Inspired his mentor, Dutch legend Johan Cruyff, Guardiola's innovation and intensity are unmatched in modern football, and he will leave an indelible imprint on City and the English game, where his tactics and various possession-based styles of play have been copied and replicated time and time again at all levels - from tiki-taka to inverted full-backs, false nines and box midfields.

Maresca is, of course, one of Pep's many disciples - as is Premier League-winning Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta, as well as countless others the world over. The scope of his influence really is immeasurable.

And we haven't even talked about the trophies. Guardiola has made winning such a habit that we take it for granted that City will lift a piece of silverware at the end of each and every season; they haven't failed to do so since the manager's debut campaign. That level of consistent success is going to be so, so difficult to replicate.

Guardiola has, though, gone about laying the groundwork for potential future success under whoever replaced him. Over the past few transfer windows, he has overseen a gradual overhaul of a squad that was starting to look past its best in 2024-25, with a new, younger core ready to carry the club forward.

The ageing De Bruyne, Ederson, Kyle Walker and Ilkay Gundogan have been moved on, being replaced by the likes of Rayan Cherki, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Abdukodir Khusanov and Tijjani Reijnders - all of whom are yet to reach their respective peaks.

This season, City's January business was particularly impressive, with shrewd signings Antoine Semenyo and Marc Guehi looking like they have played for the club for years while helping their side push Arsenal all the way in what had previously looked like a long-lost title race.

From the academy, Nico O'Reilly has been arguably the Premier League's breakout star of 2025-26 and looks set to become one of the finest full-back-cum-midfielders around, cut in the mould of a Guardiola player as someone who is supremely athletic and versatile at the age of just 21.

There is plenty, then, for Maresca to work with, and the Italian will be a familiar face to many members of the squad from his time at the club working under Guardiola at various levels. The former Juventus and Sevilla midfielder cut his coaching teeth in the academy, guiding City's Under-23 squad to the Premier League 2 title in 2020-21 during the Covid era.

After a brief and unsuccessful stint as Parma boss in his home country, he returned to the Etihad Campus in June 2022 to serve as one of Guardiola's first-team assistant coaches, where he learned from his biggest inspiration at close quarters.

It was, of course, in the ensuing 2022-23 season that City claimed their historic treble, with Maresca seeing his stock rise as a member of Pep's backroom team. Relegated Leicester City would come calling that summer, and after winning the Championship title with the Foxes, Chelsea would roll the dice on him a year later.

Even during his time in charge of City's domestic rivals Chelsea, Maresca would speak about Guardiola in glowing terms, and vice versa, calling him a "genius" and revealing his counterpart had actually inspired his coaching career.

"I decided to be a manager because of Pep's team, Barcelona years ago," he admitted last year. "I don’t think no one can be compared – this is my personal opinion – to that Barcelona, and to Pep. Because I think they changed football in Spain, where every club was trying to play in that way.

"And then Pep moved to Germany and everyone was trying to play in that way in Germany. I think Pep came in England and many clubs tried to do something similar, and also England in terms of the international team. So I don't think anyone can be compared to Pep, because I think in the last 20, 25 years he changed football."

Guardiola has had high praise for his former colleague, too. "One of the best managers in the world, Enzo Maresca, I know him quite well, but the job he has done at Chelsea does not get enough credit," he said earlier this season. "Winning the Club World Cup, Conference League, qualification for the Champions League in a league that is so tough with a young team. It is exceptional."

However, City fans may well question why City's succession plan is a one-horse race, despite Guardiola's endorsement and Maresca's previous association with the club. They certainly have the financial means to replace one elite manager with another, and the likes of Xabi Alonso, Andoni Iraola and Xavi could have been more exciting options, although the former has just taken over at Chelsea.

There are two other Guardiola disciples who are doing stellar work, too. You wonder whether the Cityzens enquired about Luis Enrique's availability, as he aims to win a second consecutive Champions League with Paris Saint-Germain. There is surely not much more to achieve with the French giants, given they usually stroll to the Ligue 1 title. It has been reported that the Spaniard could walk away at the end of his contract in 2027, however.

Then there is Kompany, the legendary former City captain who has Bayern Munich playing some of the best football in Europe. It would be a surprise if the Premier League giants hadn't at least attempted to lure him back, although it has been reported that Kompany is committed to the long-term project in Bavaria, with a Champions League triumph the main objective.

Given the options available, then, Maresca probably represents a safe pair of hands who is familiar with the club, and a cheap alternative, although City may still be required to pay Chelsea a compensation fee.

Nevertheless, the jury is out on whether one of Guardiola's disciples can come anywhere close to replicating his success at the Etihad. Maresca certainly doesn't arrive with the same reputation his soon-to-be predecessor had when he was appointed in 2016, while there may also be questions over his slower style of play.

The Italian's time at Chelsea was tumultuous; what looked like a genuine title challenge in his debut campaign at the helm would unravel over the course of a torrid winter, as the Blues slid from second and within two points of eventual champions Liverpool to finish fourth, 15 points off top spot.

He did, however, deliver that all-important silverware. As expected, Chelsea won the Conference League at a canter, before shocking pretty much everyone by going all the way in the Club World Cup last summer, thrashing PSG in a Cole Palmer-inspired victory in the final.

That result was seen as hugely significant within the walls of Stamford Bridge and by those associated with the club, but it wasn't the precursor to more success; Maresca was sacked on New Year's Day with the club seventh in the Premier League after a run of one win in seven games, amid rumours that he had already held talks over replacing Guardiola at City.

Having looked like a potential long-term head coach for Chelsea, his exit mainly came about because of a breakdown in his relationship with the club hierarchy. He took aim at his bosses in a now-infamous press conference in the weeks before his departure, reportedly as a result of their meddling in first-team affairs, failures in the transfer market and the fact Maresca felt he deserved a new contract after his exploits the previous season.

But Chelsea and Man City are very different beasts these days, and away from then notoriously chaotic working environment at Stamford Bridge, Maresca may well have the space to thrive. He will certainly be backed in the transfer window, and will bring a degree of continuity with his possession-based tactical approach that incorporates inverted full-backs, something he surely picked up from Guardiola.

A stony-faced, serious head coach in his press conferences, the 46-year-old certainly doesn't have the same charismatic public-facing persona as the Catalan, and Chelsea fans never fully warmed to him in the same way they did Thomas Tuchel or Antonio Conte. But Maresca has demonstrated that he has the same intensity, detail oriented nature, desire to win and ability to foster a togetherness in the dressing room.

Maresca's existing knowledge and familiarity with City and their younger players will be invaluable, too, as he ushers in a new era at the Etihad.