Kieran McKenna to sign new Ipswich deal amid Manchester United interest, Chelsea to finalise Enzo Maresca – Paper Round – Eurosport

Kieran McKenna is set to commit his future to Ipswich Town, with the Telegraph reporting the 38-year-old is in advanced talks over a new contract with the newly-promoted side. McKenna has attracted interest from Brighton, Chelsea and Manchester United, but is close to agreeing new terms at Ipswich.

McKenna has become highly coveted after steering Ipswich to back-to-back promotions.

“McKenna decided to withdraw from Chelsea’s appointment process over the weekend, with the Stamford Bridge club now in advanced talks with Enzo Maresca at Leicester.

“Yet behind the scenes, Ipswich officials have been working on a new long-term deal, with majority shareholder Ed Schwartz flying in from the United States to hold talks with McKenna and the club’s chief executive Mark Ashton.”

Multiple outlets are reporting that Chelsea are close to finalising a deal for Leicester head coach Enzo Maresca, with the Guardian claiming a five-year contract is set to be signed by the 44-year-old.

Maresca won the Championship with Leicester, and has emerged as the leading candidate to replace Mauricio Pochettino at Chelsea, who were also considering McKenna, as well as Brentford’s Thomas Frank and Roberto De Zerbi.

“Chelsea will still need to agree compensation with Leicester, who will want around £10m to release their manager. Sources close to Maresca have also stressed the Italian has not been in a rush to leave the east Midlands club and could decide to stay if he has any late reservations about moving to west London.

“Chelsea met representatives of Frank last week and had been speaking to McKenna’s agents for several weeks. McKenna was seen by Brighton as a replacement for De Zerbi but the 38-year-old has decided to stay at Ipswich.”

Meanwhile, De Zerbi has been sounded out by Manchester United as a possible replacement for Erik ten Hag, the Guardian reports. United will conduct an end-of-season review this week, with Ten Hag’s future unclear after their season ended on a high – an FA Cup final victory over rivals Manchester City.

Nevertheless, the Guardian expect Ten Hag to be sacked after reporting last week he would be dismissed regardless of the FA Cup final’s outcome.

According to the Manchester Evening News, United will consider retaining Ten Hag for next season.

With United finishing eighth in the Premier League, there could be sense among the ownership that the head coach is not the problem, with the club requiring an overhaul that goes beyond just the manager.

“This season’s eighth-place finish was United’s lowest since 1990 and they suffered a Premier League-era record 14 defeats. United’s uplifting FA Cup victory secured Europa League qualification and Ten Hag is the first manager to secure silverware in successive seasons since Sir Alex Ferguson in 2011.

“United are preparing for another squad rebuild and are open to offers for every player apart from Andre Onana, Kobbie Mainoo, Alejandro Garnacho and Rasmus Hojlund. The club have invested more than £400million in signings under Ten Hag.”