Thomas Tuchel has been sacked as manager of Chelsea after defeat to Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League.
The shock decision comes just six games into the new Premier League season, with the Blues sixth in the standings, five points behind early leaders Arsenal.
The German led Chelsea to Champions League and Club World Cup victory in his 20-month spell in charge at Stamford Bridge, but new owner Todd Boehly has removed him after a middling start to the new campaign.
The Blues spent over £200m on new signings this summer, and now a new man will be charged with taking the revamped squad forward.
So who are the contenders to replace Tuchel in the dugout?
More on Chelsea FC
Thomas Tuchel sacked by Chelsea after defeat to Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League07 September, 2022
Fofana endures nightmare Champions League debut as Zagreb stun Chelsea - ratings and analysis06 September, 2022
UCL predictions: Man City's new X-factor, Liverpool's revenge mission and no excuses for Spurs06 September, 2022Mauricio Pochettino
Chelsea hired Tuchel shortly after he was fired by Paris Saint-Germain, and they could repeat the same trick again by opting for the currently unattached Mauricio Pochettino, out of work since leaving the Parc des Princes to be replaced by Christophe Galtier this summer.
The Argentine is of course most well-known in the Premier League for his five-year spell in charge of Tottenham Hotspur, who he took to second in the table as well as the final of the Champions League.
With the 50-year-old former central defender out of work and Chelsea potentially looking for a sharp turnaround, an agreement would surely be easily found if both sides are willing.
Graham Potter
Brighton manager Graham Potter first rose to public prominence as the manager of northern Swedish outfit Ostersund, masterminding a Europa League victory over Arsenal at Emirates Stadium.
Since that role, he has impressed in his time in charge of both Swansea and latterly Brighton, who regularly rank among the most impressive teams in the country in terms of underlying data.
If Chelsea are looking to make a forward-thinking, performance-based appointment, Potter could well be the right man to target. Whether he is willing to leave behind the project he is building at Brighton is another question.
More on Premier League
How Everton's 'tough core', faith in Lampard and a financial 'reset' have galvanised the club07 September, 2022
VAR has never worked and never will, it's time to scrap it for the good of football05 September, 2022
Everton's anti-Benitez, Rashford's Man Utd revival and VAR madness infuriates West Ham05 September, 2022Interim + Didier Deschamps
Now, hear us out here, but this two-step approach could be appealing to Chelsea.
The Blues have gone down the interim manager route plenty of times before, with the likes of Avram Grant, Rafael Benitez and Guus Hiddink.
Hiddink has taken caretaker charge of the club on two previous occasions, in 2009 and 2015, and would surely be happy to leave his role as assistant manager of Australia to take the reigns at Stamford Bridge again if the Blues are unable to find a suitable permanent replacement for Tuchel in the short-term. Ex-captain John Terry could be an alternative if Hiddink is no longer fancied.
Former Chelsea midfielder Didier Deschamps has been manager of the French national side for 10 years, winning the World Cup in 2018, and will lead his nation to the finals again in Qatar in November. After so long in charge of France, another World Cup success could mean he fancies a new challenge, or a poor result could see him removed from his position.
The fact that Roman Abramovich is no longer running Chelsea may significantly reduce the chances of a Hiddink return or a nostalgia-based Deschamps appointment, but a two-pronged approach like this can’t be ruled out if an early favourite turns the job down and the club is left scrambling for a solution.
Zinedine Zidane
One of the greatest footballers of all time, Zidane’s managerial career consists solely of two separate spells with Real Madrid, in which the 50-year-old won a superb three Champions League trophies in a row as well two La Liga titles.
He has often been linked with the managerial post at Paris Saint-Germain, but turned it down once again this summer, and has openly revealed his desire to one day coach the French national team he won the World Cup with as a player in 1998.
More on Champions League
Celtic showed they 'can beat most teams in the Champions League' after making Real 'suffer'07 September, 2022
Celtic's dreamers defeated in Paradise on a Champions League night where anything felt possible06 September, 2022
Haaland's record is starting to defy belief - no striker comes close to his potency06 September, 2022That could mean he would rather hold out to potentially replace Deschamps this winter, but Chelsea may well make contact with a man whose record in coaching an elite level club is simply stellar.
Diego Simeone
Eleven years into his time as manager of Atletico Madrid, Diego Simeone is linked with every managerial position at elite level clubs whenever they crop up, but his loyalty to the club he spent five seasons with as a player has always remained steadfast.
The 52-year-old has made Atletico one of the most unique teams on the European stage, their relentless aggression and gnarliness rendering them one of the toughest challenges in continental competition. The former Argentina international has beaten Real Madrid and Barcelona to two La Liga titles against the odds, as well as reaching two Champions League finals.
Whether Chelsea players and fans would relish the idea of Simeone’s particular brand of football is debatable, and the likelihood of him leaving Atletico is low.
Roger Schmidt
German coach Roger Schmidt only took over at Benfica this summer, but has already been linked with a switch to Stamford Bridge.
The 55-year-old has a peculiar CV, having spent time coaching both Red Bull Salzburg and Bayer Leverkusen before two seasons in China with Beijing Guoan. But for the past two years he was with PSV Eindhoven in the Eredivisie, winning the Dutch equivalent of the FA Cup.
Schmidt was linked with the Liverpool job before Jurgen Klopp took over in 2015, but has been off most top level clubs’ radar in recent years.
He may be a highly thought of coach, but replacing Tuchel with Schmidt would potentially underwhelm both Chelsea supporters and the squad.
from Football | News and analysis from the Premier League and beyond | iNews https://ift.tt/HDmyvAV
Post a Comment