Chelsea are on the managerial hunt after parting ways with Graham Potter - and Julian Nagelsmann is expected to take over
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Chelsea are currently seeking a new manager to take over at Stamford Bridge, after sacking Graham Potter on Sunday night.
Potter lasted less than eight months in the job, with poor results ultimately culminating in his dismissal. He managed 31 games in total for Chelsea, losing 11 as they now sit in 11th place in the Premier League.
Champions League qualification seems almost impossible for next season, too, but there's a glimmer of hope in the competition itself. They'll have to beat Real Madrid in the quarter-finals before facing either Bayern Munich or Manchester City if they manage to beat the European champions.
It leaves the favourites for the job with an uphill task to turn results around...
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Julian Nagelsmann has emerged as the favourite to become the next Chelsea manager, having recently been replaced by former Blues boss Thomas Tuchel at Bayern Munich.
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Still only 35, Nagelsmann is a highly promising manager available to work immediately, though it is unclear whether Chelsea will decide to move before the end of the season.
European football journalist Guillem Balague believes Nagelsmannn is the perfect candidate to deal with the pressures of Chelsea.
He said on BBC Radio 5 Live: "Julian Nagelsmann has a great relationship with the owner of Chelsea [Todd Boehly].
"Chelsea are looking for a name, a personality, someone big enough to deal with what Chelsea has. I put Nagelsmann at the top of that list."
2. Bruno Saltor: 11/2
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Chelsea still have ten Premier League games remaining, and, with Spanish coach Bruno Saltor currently interim head coach of the Blues, he could stick it out until the end of the season. A permanent manager is defined as someone who takes charge of ten league games, according to the bookmakers, which Bruno could fulfil should Todd Boehly and Co. fail to find a replacement for Potter before the end of the season.
Saltor worked under Potter as a coach at Brighton after retiring from professional football in 2019, and moved with him earlier this season.
3. Luis Enrique: 7/1
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Speaking last week, amid reports linking him with the vacant managerial position at Tottenham Hotspur, Luis Enrique admitted his desire to work in England in the future, though that depended on the right job becoming available.
"I follow above all the Premier [League] because I would like to go to England to work," Luis Enrique told Cadena Ser radio on Wednesday.
"I wouldn't go to any team but to one that could do important things, which greatly reduces the number. I don't put my hopes up, really, because there are many candidates."
Chelsea would be able to match Enrique's ambitions of fighting for top honours, while also giving him plenty of money to play with in transfer windows. Don't rule this option out.
4. Mauricio Pochettino: 12/1
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Heavily linked with a return to Tottenham, Pochettino could prefer popping up at Stamford Bridge instead. While he struggled to deal with a PSG dressing room packing with huge egos and some of the world's greatest players, the Argentine would have the ability to work with a promising squad he can rebuild as he sees fit.
The Real Madrid job could also become available in the summer, though, something Pochettino could wait for depending on the circumstances surrounding Carlo Ancelotti's future.
5. Zinedine Zidane: 14/1
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Since leaving Real Madrid at the end of the 2020/21 campaign, Zidane has been out of work, waiting for the right opportunity to present itself.
Reports suggest he is only interested in becoming the manager of the France national team, but Didier Deschamps has signed a contract that will keep him in post until the 2026 World Cup, meaning Zizou might opt to assess his options elsewhere. One of the greatest players in history, Zidane certainly has the pedigree to deal with a squad packed with talent, as displayed during his three consecutive Champions League victories in the Spanish capital.
Whether he will want to take on the rigours of being Chelsea manager in its current capacity remains to be seen, though.
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Ryan is a staff writer for FourFourTwo, joining the team full-time in October 2022. He first joined Future in December 2020, working across FourFourTwo, Golf Monthly, Rugby World and Advnture's websites, before eventually earning himself a position with FourFourTwo permanently. After graduating from Cardiff University with a degree in Journalism and Communications, Ryan earned a NCTJ qualification to further develop as a writer while a Trainee News Writer at Future.
