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It has been a hectic start to the new year for Chelsea. After a torrid run of form in December, the Blues’ owners decided to sack manager Enzo Maresca on New Year’s Day.

It was certainly a snap decision, and despite rumours, it seemed that there was a chance he might stay at the club.

But, it wasn’t to be the case, with the Italian removed from his post after winning two trophies in 2025, including the Club World Cup.

With under-21s manager Calum McFarlane set to take charge of the West Londoners against Manchester City this weekend, the search is now on for a new manager.

Well, rumours are already beginning to intensify about who that may be.

Chelsea’s candidates to replace Maresca

It seems that there is one name consistently coming up when it comes to Maresca’s replacement in the hotseat at Stamford Bridge. That man is Liam Rosenior, who is in charge of Chelsea’s sister club RC Strasbourg.

However, if a move for Rosenior doesn’t materialise, the club’s owners, BlueCo, could well cast the net further afield in their search for a new boss. According to BBC Sport, one of the names in contention is Porto manager Francesco Farioli.

The Italian, who is just 36 years of age, has ‘been mooted as a potential contender’ according to BBC reporters Sami Mokbel and Nizaar Kinsella.

He still has 18 months left on his contract, so it seems likely that Chelsea would have to pay compensation to bring him to West London.

Why Farioli would be an upgrade on Rosenior

Although Farioli has only been at Porto since July 2025, he has already made a fantastic start to life in Portugal. It comes after building up a good reputation in Ligue 1 with OGC Nice, whom he managed for a season in 2023/24, prior to joining Ajax for 2024/25.

Indeed, the start Farioli has made in charge of the Portuguese giants has been impressive. In 26 matches so far across all competitions, the Italian, most often deploying a 4-3-3 formation, has led his side to 22 wins.

His side have dominated games, scoring 56 times and conceding just 13.

Farioli record at Porto (all comps)

Stat

Number

Preferred formation

4-3-3

Matches

26

Wins

22

Draws

2

Losses

2

Goals for

56

Goals against

13

Points per game (league only)

2.88

Stats from Transfermarkt

You can certainly draw comparisons between Farioli during his spell at Ajax and Maresca at Chelsea. Eif Soccer’s Marc Geschwind said the situations at each club were “so similar,” with both having to work with “incompetent management” in their old roles.

Indeed, things were tough at times for Maresca during his stint at the Bridge. There was a reported “lack of protection and interference leading to critical issues with ownership,” which Farioli might have to contend with.

His time at Ajax – which ended with a narrow title miss in the Eredivisie – might stand him in good stead, in that sense.

Rosenior, meanwhile, has done well at Strasburg during the 18 months he’s managed the club.

Last term, he guided Le Racing to seventh in Ligue 1, steering them to the Conference League and playing some excellent football along the way.

His record overall for the club is certainly impressive. In 62 games at the club so far, he’s won 32 and lost just 16 times.

Subscribe for insider Chelsea manager analysis and more Get deeper context on Chelsea’s managerial search by subscribing to the newsletter — tactical breakdowns of contenders like Farioli and Rosenior, data-driven comparisons, and practical implications for the club’s playing style and ambitions.

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The London-born manager has certainly done well in Ligue 1, and it would be a simple deal for the Blues to do, with Strasbourg being a BlueCo club.

However, it is perhaps less risky to appoint Farioli. Not only has he managed in Ligue 1, thus leaving him with similar experience to Rosenior, but the Italian’s work with Porto has shown he can dominate a league at the highest level.

That is, of course, the ultimate goal for Chelsea. They want to be a possession-heavy, free-flowing side who are able to keep things tight at the back. In a short few months in Portugal, Farioli has shown he can do that.

Rosenior might be the safe option. Yet, perhaps the Porto boss, who is more used to working under a stricter regime, has football that is more scalable to a top side, which Chelsea are hoping to be.

Related Dream Rosenior alternative: Chelsea considering the "best coach in the PL"

This manager could be Chelsea’s perfect Maresca replacement

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Will Irfan Pathan get the nod for the ODI series against Australia? © Getty Images

While all the speculation over Tuesday’s selection committee meeting surrounds the appointment of a new captain for the seven-match home ODI series against Australia, the day’s agenda goes beyond that. They have to answer some tricky questions when they pick the one-day squad, the foremost being whether Harbhajan Singh and Virender Sehwag have done enough to make a comeback. They will also have to see how to find room for Irfan Pathan.In the recent past the selectors have resisted the temptation to make wholesale changes to the limited-overs team, chopping and changing only when fitness issues arose. And there is one in front of them: Munaf Patel, who was drafted into the team in place of Sreesanth for the ODI series in England, fell well short of expectations. He managed no more than a handful of overs at decent pace and Venkatesh Prasad, the bowling coach, questioned the “intensity level” with which he was operating. The timing and manner of Prasad’s statements – openly to the media, midway through the series – were surprising but it’s indicative that the team may have run out of patience with Munaf.Munaf’s exit will likely afford Ajit Agarkar another chance in the one-day team, something that might otherwise have been in doubt.Irfan Pathan has rediscovered the swing that made him such a potent force when he arrived in international cricket and has made telling contributions with the bat and on the field for India A. Though he is far from back to his best – the rhythm and pace still need plenty of work – he is clearly on the road to rehabilitation. When Pathan was axed from the team his bowling had fallen apart, with no swing and no real pace making him cannon fodder for the batsmen.If the Pathan question is easily answered by Munaf’s exit, the selectors have a slightly more tricky task deciding on what to do with Sehwag and Harbhajan. Neither has performed exceptionally well in the ICC World Twenty20 but Harbhajan has been on the ball. He has bowled with control and good rhythm, and would surely have been pushing for a place had the two incumbent spinners, Piyush Chawla and Ramesh Powar, not done so outstandingly well in the last series.While the medium-pacers came in for some tap, both Powar and Chawla exerted great control over England’s batsmen. Even Kevin Pietersen, who has dominated spinners of the quality of Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan, found it hard to get both Powar and Chawla away. Powar slowed things down cleverly while Chawla had the advantage of being able to bowl his legbreak and googly from the same line. The fact that both spinners held their own might just make it hard for Harbhajan to force his way back in.The question of Sehwag is more tricky. The fact that he doesn’t find a place in either the Test or one-day team makes things a bit difficult for Dilip Vengsarkar and company. It’s no secret that Sehwag was being groomed for the captaincy, the thinking being that he was the link between the Tendulkar-Ganguly-Dravid generation and the one that would succeed it. This fact kept Sehwag in the team longer than many expected, even after he lost form, but now the case for Sehwag might build again, with Dravid giving up the reins.This could spell the end for Rohit Sharma, who was in the squad but did not get a game in the seven-match series in England and is yet to find a place in the eleven in the ICC World Twenty20.Vengsarkar is tight-lipped about the selection, and it seems his colleagues aren’t fully in the loop when it comes to the captaincy question. All will be revealed on Tuesday, and though there is room for surprises, don’t be surprised if Vengsarkar doesn’t ring in too much change.

Having spoken with Gillespie, Buchanan expected Vaughan to play a role in this summer’s Test series © Getty Images

Michael Vaughan’s “small window of opportunity” for the Ashes has been rubbished by John Buchanan as a “smokescreen” after he consulted with Jason Gillespie, who recently returned from a stint with Yorkshire, on Vaughan’s condition.In reaction to Vaughan’s surprising suggestion that he would be fit to make the Boxing Day Test, Buchanan admitted he was far from surprised about the gossip. “I never bought into the will-he-won’t-he talk,” he told . “We will wait and see what squad they bring, and if some of what has been suggested about him playing in the Ashes has been a smokescreen. To us, this news wasn’t unexpected.”We haven’t been doing any specific scouting of him, but I have spoken to Jason a few times. He has been in and around the Yorkshire side and has been seeing how Vaughan is doing. We fully expect England to have a very similar side to the one that played in the last Ashes series.Vaughan’s comments regarding his dodgy knee have varied. Last month he declared that he had no chance of returning before the VB Series. In July, he suggested his career was over. A report in the has now quoted Vaughan as saying that playing in the Ashes was “definitely a target”.”A fit Vaughan is important, not just to England as a batsman, but also in the way that he leads,” Buchanan said. “I’m sure he’ll do everything he can to play in the Ashes.”

Team manager Amitabh Choudhury says Ganguly went back on a deal © Getty Images

Amitabh Choudhury, the manager of the Indian side on their recent tour to Zimbabwe, has said he was “astonished” with Sourav Ganguly’s revelations to the media about goings on in the dressing-room and felt that he had “gone back on a deal”.”We all agreed that this was a matter that should stay between us and should not, under any circumstances, be discussed with the media,” Choudhury told . He said he asked Ganguly why he’d gone public, to which the captain replied that he’d responded to a journalist’s question.Tracing the origin of the whole crisis, Choudhury added that Chappell’s suggestion that Ganguly step down as captain was a “very remarkable thing to happen”. “Sourav then said that the coach had told him the reasons why he should step down as captain. First, his current form did not warrant his being in the team as captain. And second, that in the Mutare match he had left the field because the new ball had been taken by the Zimbabwe team.”In my opinion, the coach’s was an extraordinary decision. It should not have been taken during the tour. And it should be left for the national selection committee to look into it. I told Sourav that you have done the right thing by speaking your heart … I told him that he must keep cool. I will try to resolve the problem. I went to Rahul and told him the facts. Rahul agreed with me that any decision on matters related with the coach’s decision must not be taken on a tour. Then both Rahul and I went to Chappell and explained to him what effect his decision, if honoured, would have on the team. He did consider that he had made some suggestion to the captain.”Then all three of us went to Sourav and talked to him for 30 to 40 minutes. All four of us agreed on two things. One, the status quo being maintained with Sourav remaining captain. Two, all four of us keep the entire affair a closely guarded secret.”Choudhury didn’t want to comment on Chappell’s observation that Ganguly was mentally and physically not fit to be captain, but, added that his `tantrums and `uppishness’ might have irritated Chappell.

Scorecard
The West Indians continued to warm-up well ahead of next week’s first Test on the second day of their tour match against Sri Lanka A at Shenley. Resuming on 351 for 6, Ridley Jacobs and Omari Banks added a further 183 runs together as the West Indians declared at 534 for 7. Sri Lanka A then closed at 271 for 6, with Banks taking three of the wickets to fall.Just as they did yesterday, the West Indians managed to prove that they can score runs without Brian Lara, as Jacobs and Banks continued the run fest. Jacobs, resuming on 30 not out, finished unbeaten on 117, with 17 fours and a six. While Jacobs is a certain starter next week at Lord’s, Banks pushed his case with an entertaining 90 from 85 balls, with nine fours and six sixes. He put on a commanding stand with Banks until he was caught by Malintha Gajanayake off Thilan Thushara.Ramnaresh Sarwan, the acting captain, immediately closed the innings with West Indies at 534 for 7, after all five of the Sri Lanka bowlers finished with at least 90 runs against their names.However, Shantha Kalavitigoda and Ian Daniel proved they could live with the big boys too. They put on 92 for the opening wicket before Kalavitigoda was caught by Tino Best off Dwayne Bravo for 27. Daniel continued his good form on the tour, and he had made a quick 72 when Fidel Edwards had him caught by Bravo.Malintha Gajanayake and Jehan Mubarak carried on the good work, adding 78 together. Gajanayake, though, was caught by Devon Smith to give Best his first wicket of the match. Banks then followed up his impressive performance with the bat by grabbing three wickets. The first to go was Mubarak, caught by Dwaye Smith for 61. Then Bathiya Perera was snaffled behind by Jacobs for 19, and Kaushal Lokuarachchi was also caught, by Edwards for 10.Prasanna Jayawardene and Thushara were then left holding the fort at the close with Sri Lanka A still 263 runs behind.

Zimbabwe has confirmed its team for the first npower Test match versus England at Lord’s, beginning on Thursday 22 May. The 11 players selected are:Heath Streak, captain
Tatenda Taibu, vice captain and wicketkeeper
Dion Ebrahim
Mark Vermeulen
Stuart Carlisle
Grant Flower
Andy Blignaut
Travis Friend
Sean Ervine
Douglas Hondo
Ray Price
There are two changes from the team that drew with Sussex in the last lead up game at Hove. Seam bowling all rounder Travis Friend replaces Douglas Marillier, while pace bowler Douglas Hondo replaces Mluleki Nkala.Zimbabwe coach Geoff Marsh commented: “All 15 players were fit and available for selection. The final eleven gives us depth and variety in bowling, while the top order batting is supported by a number of genuine all round performers.”Despite losing a lot of play against Sussex our build up to the Test has gone well, with a win, a tie and a draw. Most of the batsmen have spent time in the middle and three have already produced big hundreds”.Captain Heath Streak added:”Our bowlers have all acclimatised pretty well to early-season English conditions and have delivered good spells in all three of the tour games. With unsettled weather forecast for Lord’s and a pitch that might favour the faster bowlers, the luxury of being able to call on five seam bowlers gives us plenty of options.”Streak will lead a five-pronged pace attack on a ground where he returned his best Test figures of 6-87, against England in 2000. Andy Blignaut, Douglas Hondo (12 wickets in two tour games to date), Sean Ervine and Travis Friend complete the seam attack. Ray Price provides contrast with left arm spin and will be backed up by fellow left armer Grant Flower.Three of the top order batsmen go into the Test with substantial centuries to their credit on tour: Grant Flower:130 v British Universities, Stuart Carlisle: 159 v Worcestershire and Mark Vermuelen:198 v Sussex.Nine of the starting line up are first class centurions (Hondo and Price being the exceptions).ZCU Media Contacts: Lovemore Banda, ZCU Communications Manager
Cell: + 44 (0)7818 881443
or
Mark Harrison, Media Consultant
Mobile: + 44 (0) 7776 182506

Sussex CCC are pleased to announce the appointment of 32-year-oldKeith Greenfield as its inaugural ECB-linked Academy Director.Greenfield brings a wealth of experience to this position having been along-term staff coach with Sussex as well as being 2nd XI Coach/Managerfor the past four seasons.Keith also played 78 first-class matches for the county.The vacant 2nd XI coaching position will now be filled by theexperienced Mark Robinson. Whilst Robinson’s playing days are notnecessarily over, his appointment signifies the next phase of hiscricketing career.Commenting on the two appointments Chief Executive, David Gilbert said:”The county is indeed fortunate to have people such as Keith and Markentrusted with the development of our elite young cricketers. We knowthat the futures of these players are in very good hands.”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsMohammad Hafeez was a dominant figure during Pakistan’s Test series victory against England and he was to the fore once more, striking an unbeaten century as they took the opening ODI in Abu Dhabi by six wickets with 6.2 overs to spare.Much of the work had been done earlier by a strikingly disciplined and energetic display in the field by Pakistan, who limited England to 216, at least 40 runs under par, before Hafeez settled in on a sluggish, largely unresponsive surface to register his 11th one-day hundred.It ensured the victory his side craved as a send-off for Younis Khan after his abrupt announcement on the morning of the match that he would retire from ODI cricket that same evening.So Younis has his farewell victory. His final ODI innings – although in Pakistan cricket you never can tell – was a laboured affair – 9 in 18 balls before he came to grief with an ugly pull to mid-on. No matter: he got the bat waves to cheering spectators, the guard of honour from smiling team mates, and ultimately got the victory. Dropped during the World Cup, seemingly for good, he had felt entitled to a departure with all the trimmings and had somehow managed to contrive exactly that.Upon his dismissal, at 41 for 3, the game remained in the balance, Reece Topley’s heavily-inked left-arm, in his first overseas ODI, having found some inswing to claim all three wickets. They were an interesting trio, kicked off by the captain Azhar Ali and a failed pinch hitter in Bilal Asif, both of them falling lbw. It could have been worse for Younis – Topley almost got him lbw first ball only for Younis to get a bit of bat on it. After 264 ODIs he probably felt entitled to a bit of fortune.Hafeez’s methodical hundred – intelligently constructed strokeplay at the top of the order – at least gave some vague legitimacy to England’s waste of a review when he was 16 by underlining the importance of his wicket. For all that, it was among the more optimistic lbw appeals ever reviewed, Hafeez having middled it, only for a second impact some time later persuading Chris Woakes into a spot of wishful thinking.As for England’s spinners, the story of the Test series remained embedded with 19 overs shared between Moeen Ali, Adil Rashid and Joe Root for 104 runs with only the wicket of Shoaib Malik, who flicked Moeen to midwicket, to show for it. But the spinners would have needed to be a wondrous bunch to build pressure with so few to defend. Hafeez could play much as he pleased. “It would be cruel to criticise the bowlers with only 216 on the board,” Morgan said.Babar Azam, who made his debut against Zimbabwe is his home city of Lahore earlier this year, also impressed with an unbeaten 62 in only his fourth ODI. His pull for six against David Willey was the final statement that for England there would be no way back. He might have been fortunate, however, to survive Topley’s return when, at 145 for 4, the bowler might have won a fourth wicket via a feather down the leg side, only for the umpire, Johan Cloete, to indicate with a gentle tap that he imagined the ball had brushed the batsman’s thigh. A storming catch earlier – a spring to his left at straight midwicket to intercept a Moeen Ali pull – added to a lustrous day.England were purring along at 147 for 3, with Eoin Morgan and James Taylor having recovered an early collapse with a stand of 133 in 27 overs, but wickets then clattered for a second time against disciplined bowling and alert fielding. Morgan and Taylor made 136 runs between them; the rest of England’s top 7 made 18.Morgan could at least draw personal encouragement from his first appearance – the practice match against Hong Kong apart – since he was concussed by a blow on the head from the Australia quick Mitchell Starc at Old Trafford at the tail-end of the English season. Wearing additional protective flaps on his helmet, he looked in excellent order in making 76 from 96 before Malik found slight turn and he edged to the wicketkeeper.Morgan did get off the mark in fortunate fashion when he pulled languidly at a ball from Mohammad Irfan and happily accepted the award of four runs off his forearm. Surprisingly, even on such a slow surface Azhar did not bring on Wahab Riaz earlier than planned with instructions to fire in a few short ones.Taylor, too, could take satisfaction from the stand, but he was culpable in the run out of Jos Buttler, desperately hoping for a change of fortune, but out with a single to his name, forced him into a push-and-run single to midwicket, leaving the wicketkeeper with time to sweep up Azhar slick pick up and throw.With a need to remedy his miscalculation, Taylor then fell for 60 when he chipped Malik to short midwicket. Taylor would have faltered even earlier than that had Pakistan not deliberated beyond the stipulated 15 seconds before unsuccessfully requesting a review for an lbw appeal by Malik which replays showed was hitting leg stump.England’s start was rocky: three wickets down for 14 with the innings only 3.1 overs old. Growing attention is being given to Jason Roy’s crooked defensive technique, but it was also an excellent delivery from Irfan that seemed to beat him for pace and rattled his off stump. Joe Root logged England’s second duck when he fell lbw to Anwar Ali – he spent England’s review as well, in the mistaken belief that the ball was missing leg – and Alex Hales became Anwar’s second wicket when Younis held a juggling catch at slip.The confrontation between Irfan, at 7ft tall, and Taylor, around 18 inches shorter, was a photographic joy. Add the additional height of Irfan’s arm and Taylor was receiving a delivery from more than three feet above his head. In Game of Thrones terms, it might not quite have been Tyrion Lannister vs Mag the Mighty, but it was not far short, and a near beamer from Irfan just added to the challenge.When Taylor quickened towards his fifty with straight sixes against Asif and Malik in turn, England must have had hopes for 280, but those sixes were also an indication of England struggling to tick along quite as effectively as the ball aged. From that point – an expanse of 21.4 overs – they managed only one more boundary. Even that was a full toss from Yasir Shah which Woakes gratefully despatched on his way to an unbeaten 33 which merely sugared the pill.

Ambati Rayudu has called it a “reality check” © Getty Images

After risking their careers by joining the Indian Cricket League, a few Hyderabad cricketers defended their decision – citing selection flaws and the increased opportunities – to turn their backs on their home state. Hyderabad had a mass exodus of players including Ambati Rayudu, Alfred Absolem, Inder Shekar Reddy, Ibrahim Khaleel, Shashank Nag, D Vinay Kumar, Kaushik Reddy and Anirudh Singh.”I’m a professional cricketer and it doesn’t really matter where I play, but with ICL now my standard will only improve,” Absolem told reporters in Hyderabad. A right-arm seamer, he has played just one full season for Hyderabad and made an instant impact, picking up 30 wickets from six matches at under 20.Seamer Kaushik Reddy said that they had no choice but to take such a drastic step, citing anomalies in team selection where deserving players weren’t allowed to progress. “There are many private grounds and we need not depend on Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) facilities to train and practice,”said Reddy. “We have not lost hope but we had no choice.”Perhaps the biggest loss for the side was Ambati Rayudu, the promising top-order batsman who has been on the fringes of national selection since his days as a junior cricketer. He said it was a “reality check” and, when asked about his future, said that his employers had assured him of help.The BCCI has taken a firm stance by banning all players from associating themselves with the ICL, denying them use of its facilities and privileges. The HCA said none of the players had consulted them before joining and new talent would be recruited, hinting that all the ICL players were not eligible for selection.

Imad Wasim’s brave effort on the final day went in vain as India Under-19s achieved a massive 271-run win against the Pakistan juniors in the first four-day match at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.Pakistan were down and out when play started on the final morning, but a determined fightback led by Imad almost gave them an outside chance of saving the match. India, however, managed to bowl out Pakistan for 174 in the second innings an hour before the scheduled close to earn victory.Imad stood like a rock in an attempt to save the day for Pakistan and in the process played 249 balls and stayed at the wicket for almost 300 minutes for his 35 runs. India were almost certain to wrap up the match by lunch, but Pakistan had other ideas. The overnight not-out batsmen Imad and Behram Khan (18) stood at the crease till 15 minutes before lunch. It was only through a dubious decision that India finally succeeded in taking their first wicket of the day.Behram was given out caught at silly point by Tanmay Srivastava off Ravi Jadeja, but it seemed the ball had touched the ground before the catch was taken. Instead of giving the benefit of the doubt to the batsman, umpire Shakeel Khan gave the decision in favour of the bowler.This was the second time in two successive days that the umpire had gone wrong. On Saturday, captain Mohammad Ibrahim (5) was given out when the ball deflected off the helmet before being plucked by wicketkeeper Omkar Gaurav.Despite the loss of Behram, Imad stayed cool and with the help of wicketkeeper Abdul Rauf (36) continued his efforts to deny India victory. Rauf, who was the next man out, struck five fours and put on 69 runs for the seventh wicket, but it was the time and overs they consumed that mattered the most.After fighting bravely for almost a day, Imad was the last man to get out. He struck three fours in his epic innings and impressed the sizeable crowd with the spirit and dedication he showed to stay at the crease.Piyush Chawala, the Indian captain, broke the defenses of a couple of Pakistanis with well disguised googlies and finished with 4 for 50. However, the most impressive Indian bowler was Vijakumar Yomahesh who took 4 for 44.Both teams will now leave for Peshawar on Monday to play the second four-day match, starting on September 13. The four limited-overs matches will be played from September 19.