AdminEnzo Maresca arrived at Leicester City in July 2023 with a clear remit: restore the club to the Premier League at the first attempt.
He did just that. The Italian oversaw a dominant Championship campaign, winning 31 of 46 matches and amassing 97 points as the Foxes surged to the title.
His departure for Chelsea in the summer of 2024, however, marked the beginning of fresh instability at the King Power Stadium.
Maresca has since stepped down from his role at Stamford Bridge and is currently without a club, while Leicester have endured a turbulent spell of their own.
Relegated once again after finishing 18th in the Premier League, the club have cycled through Steve Cooper, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Martí Cifuentes and now Gary Rowett, who took charge in February.
A run of poor results, compounded by a points deduction for breaching PSR rules, has left Leicester 22nd in the table, a point adrift of Portsmouth.
Wout Faes, who found opportunities limited earlier this season, sought a fresh start with a January loan move to AS Monaco. The Belgian has since re-established himself as a regular.
Reflecting on his time under Maresca, he said: “There was a year when I worked with Enzo Maresca at Leicester. There too, we really had a plan. We were like a family, we had a goal, and at every training session we had the same drive.
“I feel the same thing here [at Monaco]. The coach is very demanding, he’s very detail-oriented, he strives to keep the group on their toes – for some, it might even be a bit too much.
He doesn’t allow anyone to slack off. Once, we asked for an extra day off: he refused. But we know why we’re doing all this.”
Faes has already indicated a desire to remain in France, with Monaco holding an option to buy.
Should they decline, Leicester are expected to move him on, with his contract running until 2027 and no clear pathway back into the side.
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