Maresca is a strong admirer of Fernandez. He handed him the Chelsea captaincy when Reece James was out injured and picked the Argentine in 79 of his 92 matches at Stamford Bridge.
Although Fernandez is naturally a defensive midfielder, Maresca often used him higher up the pitch last season when Cole Palmer was sidelined, and he delivered a career-best 15 goals.
If a transfer goes through, Fernandez could slot into several roles in Maresca’s City side.
The Abu Dhabi-backed club also added England midfielder Anderson from Forest this summer.
Like Fernandez, Anderson is versatile and can operate both in a holding role and further forward.
That flexibility would give Maresca more options and means Anderson and Fernandez could comfortably play together.
Fernandez’s relationship with Chelsea deteriorated after Maresca left in January.
In March, following a heavy Champions League defeat to Paris St-Germain, he criticised the club and said his dream was to move to Madrid.
Chelsea dropped him for two matches after those Madrid comments.
Last month, Real Madrid announced they would not sign Fernandez, leaving City as the main contenders.
City are also looking at alternatives for that position if a Fernandez move doesn’t happen.
These include Lille’s 18-year-old Ayyoub Bouaddi, a World Cup breakout for Morocco.
They have also explored moves for Bournemouth’s Alex Scott—who is on Chelsea’s shortlist as well—and Liverpool’s Alexis Mac Allister.