Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea tenure begins with a tricky home fixture against reigning champions Manchester City on the opening Sunday of the 2024-25 Premier League season.
The 44-year-old, who was appointed Mauricio Pochettino’s successor in June, will then face Wolverhampton Wanderers and Crystal Palace during his first month in charge.
Chelsea play west London rivals Fulham at home on Boxing Day and finish the campaign at Nottingham Forest.
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Chelsea’s Premier League 2024-25 fixtures
All times BST/GMT
- 18/08/2024 16:30 Chelsea vs Manchester City
- 24/08/2024 15:00 Wolves vs Chelsea
- 31/08/2024 15:00 Chelsea vs Crystal Palace
- 14/09/2024 15:00 Bournemouth vs Chelsea
- 21/09/2024 15:00 West Ham United vs Chelsea
- 28/09/2024 15:00 Chelsea vs Brighton
- 05/10/2024 15:00 Chelsea vs Nottingham Forest
- 19/10/2024 15:00 Liverpool vs Chelsea
- 26/10/2024 15:00 Chelsea vs Newcastle United
- 02/11/2024 15:00 Manchester United vs Chelsea
- 09/11/2024 15:00 Chelsea vs Arsenal
- 23/11/2024 15:00 Leicester City vs Chelsea
- 30/11/2024 15:00 Chelsea vs Aston Villa
- 04/12/2024 19:45 Southampton vs Chelsea
- 07/12/2024 15:00 Tottenham Hotspur vs Chelsea
- 14/12/2024 15:00 Chelsea vs Brentford
- 21/12/2024 15:00 Everton vs Chelsea
- 26/12/2024 15:00 Chelsea vs Fulham
- 29/12/2024 15:00 Ipswich Town vs Chelsea
- 04/01/2025 15:00 Crystal Palace vs Chelsea
- 15/01/2025 19:45 Chelsea vs Bournemouth
- 18/01/2025 15:00 Chelsea vs Wolves
- 25/01/2025 15:00 Manchester City vs Chelsea
- 01/02/2025 15:00 Chelsea vs West Ham United
- 15/02/2025 15:00 Brighton vs Chelsea
- 22/02/2025 15:00 Aston Villa vs Chelsea
- 26/02/2025 19:45 Chelsea vs Southampton
- 08/03/2025 15:00 Chelsea vs Leicester City
- 15/03/2025 15:00 Arsenal vs Chelsea
- 02/04/2025 19:45 Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur
- 05/04/2025 15:00 Brentford vs Chelsea
- 12/04/2025 15:00 Chelsea vs Ipswich Town
- 19/04/2025 15:00 Fulham vs Chelsea
- 26/04/2025 15:00 Chelsea vs Everton
- 03/05/2025 15:00 Chelsea vs Liverpool
- 10/05/2025 15:00 Newcastle United vs Chelsea
- 18/05/2025 15:00 Chelsea vs Manchester United
- 25/05/2025 16:00 Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea
‘A tricky October-November’
Baptisms of fire do not get more daunting than the one facing Maresca on his competitive debut as Chelsea head coach, with champions Manchester City set to visit Stamford Bridge on the opening weekend of the Premier League’s 2024-25 season.
Facing off against his mentor Pep Guardiola will provide a formidable early examination of Maresca’s pre-season work implementing his style of play, and Chelsea supporters will be expecting to see the kind of resistance mustered by Mauricio Pochettino’s team in a thrilling 4-4 draw in last season’s corresponding fixture.
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Beyond that opening test, Maresca’s early fixture list looks relatively favourable, with the following six games all against teams who finished ninth or lower in 2023-24. But the City result could condition what follows and building momentum is likely to be key, with Liverpool, Newcastle, Manchester United and Arsenal in quick succession in October and November.
For calendar circling purposes, Chelsea travel across London to take on bitter rivals Tottenham on December 7, with the return fixture at Stamford Bridge slated for April 2.
The closing stretch of what Chelsea hope will be a charge towards Champions League qualification could be challenging, with a final-day trip to face Nottingham Forest preceded by a run of games against Liverpool, Newcastle and United.
Key dates for the 2024-25 season
The transfer window officially opened on Friday, June 14, with the infamous cut-off date for the 2023-24 profit and sustainability rules (PSR) reporting period coming at the end of the month on June 30. The window closes on Friday, August 30, at 11pm BST (6pm ET).
The winter transfer window will open on Wednesday, January 1, closing on Monday, February 3.
The new Premier League season gets underway on the weekend of August 16-18, a week after the Community Shield. That game will be another Manchester derby and a replay of last season’s FA Cup final.
The Premier League season finishes on Sunday, May 25, when all 10 fixtures will be played at the same time.
Premier League clubs will enter the FA Cup at the third round, which begins on Saturday, January 11. The Carabao Cup will begin in mid-August with Premier League teams not playing in Europe entering in the second round and the remaining seven clubs receiving a bye to the third round.
The newly-expanded Champions League, meanwhile, begins on September 17. The Europa League starts on September 25 and the Conference League gets underway on October 3.
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What about the Conference League?
Chelsea will play in the Conference League for the first time next season. Last term’s sixth-place finish guaranteed them a European spot, but Manchester United’s FA Cup final victory secured a Europa League place for Erik ten Hag’s side at Chelsea’s expense.
The Conference League is introducing a new format this season ahead of the fourth edition of the tournament.
The group stage has become a single 36-team league stage with teams playing six different sides (three at home and three away). The top eight progress to the last 16, while ninth to 24th take part in a play-off to determine the remaining eight last 16 sides.
The final takes place at the Wroclaw Stadium in Poland.
- League phase draw: August 30
- Matchday 1: October 3
- Matchday 2: October 24
- Matchday 3: November 7
- Matchday 4: November 28
- Matchday 5: December 12
- Matchday 6: December 19
- Knockout round play-offs: February 13 & 20
- Last 16: March 6 & 13
- Quarter-finals: April 10 & 17
- Semi-finals: May 1 & 8
- Final: May 28
(Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
Liam is a Staff Writer for The Athletic, covering Chelsea. He previously worked for Goal covering the Premier League before becoming the Chelsea correspondent for ESPN in 2015, witnessing the unravelling of Jose Mourinho, the rise and fall of Antonio Conte, the brilliance of Eden Hazard and the madness of Diego Costa. He has also contributed to The Independent and ITV Sport. Follow Liam on Twitter @liam_twomey
