Farewell then, Poch.
It was always going to be tough for an ex-Tottenham man to win over the Chelsea faithful, and despite a decent end to a largely meh season, the Argentine is packing his bags after just a year at Stamford Bridge.
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Despite spending well over £1 billion in the transfer market, Chelsea didn’t ever threaten a top-four finish, although they did reach the semi-finals of the FA Cup and the final of the Carabao Cup.
So, with Pochettino a goner, let’s look at the likely Next Chelsea Manager contenders and whether they want to be the next ring leader at the circus.
Enzo Maresca
Current Leicester City and former Juventus, Fiorentina and Sevilla midfielder Enzo Maresca’s name is also in the fray. After guiding Leicester back up to the Premier League his stock is certainly high. So dedicated to getting the Foxes back to the Premier League, he spent his first two months in England living at their training base. Maybe that’s more of a reflection of the choice of hotels in Leicester.
Nonetheless, with a win percentage of 68% at Leicester and much praise for the way they played, Maresca might make a good fit.
Roberto De Zerbi
After a bit of a strange exit from Brighton the Italian is free and available for a new challenge. Did a sterling job with the Seagulls getting them to a top-six finish in the 2022-23 season but they couldn’t repeat the trick this time around.
With a load of ex-Brighton players already at the Bridge, he may be able to get the best out of them if he makes the move.
Thomas Frank
Now this one would be controversial – in west London, at least. Not many swap Brentford for Chelsea, and although it’s not the fiercest of rivalries, it could sour Thomas Frank’s impressive legacy with the Bees after first getting them up, and then comfortably keeping them up in the Premier League.
Jose Mourinho
The twice-former Chelsea manager has been out of work since being relieved of his duties at Roma back in March. Despite winning the club’s first European trophy in 2022, the relationship between Mourinho and I Giallorossi had soured.
A section of Chelsea fans would gladly welcome the return of their most successful manager, just to feel something again. Yet, another section believes a third spell would only fuel an already raging fire. Whether Mourinho would get a tune out of the Blues’ young side is hard to predict, but it would certainly provide the masses with some entertainment.
Kieran McKenna
Back-to-back promotions with Ipswich have made the ex-Manchester United coach the latest hot property in the game. He might find it hard to leave Portman Road where he’s hugely popular, but the lure of the bright lights may prove too strong.
Ruben Amorim
There’s a certain famous Portuguese manager Ruben Amorim could follow in the footsteps of at Stamford Bridge… and no, we’re not talking about Andre Villas-Boas.
Amorim has already been to London for talks with a top-flight side this year after being spotted chatting with West Ham’s top dogs, but could a switch to the other side of the capital be on the cards now instead?
He’s been a huge hit at Sporting Lisbon. Could his landing the Portuguese title this season be a parting gift?
*All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change
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