UPDATE: 5 coaches ‘likely’ to take over at Chelsea

After the dismissal of Graham Potter at the weekend, Chelsea are, for the second time this season, on the hunt for a successor at the helm at Stamford Bridge.

Potter was let go after a dismal 2-0 defeat to Aston Villa, and a poor run of results in 2023.

Bruno Saltor has taken over in the interim; and on Tuesday, led the team, in his first outing, to a nil-nil draw with Liverpool at Stamford Bridge.

With Chelsea, it’s certain the club will attract the big names in the world of coaching, and so has it turned out to be in the last few days.

Mauricio Pochettino

Report: Tottenham could hire 55-year-old alongside Mauricio Pochettino – Spurs Web – Tottenham Hotspur Football News
The Argentine’s name came up as a likely option when Thomas Tuchel was relieved of his duties last year, and now the same is the narrative with Potter dismissed.

Pochettino has been out of work since a luckless spell in charge of Paris Saint Germain ended last summer, and Chelsea will surely consider him now.

Although, they may face competition for his signature with Antonio Conte recently departing Spurs as the north Londoners are considering bringing back the Argentine who unprecendentedly led them to a Champions League final.

Luis Enrique

Luis Enrique keen on Premier League job but Spurs move unlikely
After stepping down as Spain manager after a round of 16 exit at the hands of Morocco at the 2022 World Cup, Luis Enrique is sure-bet a favourite for any club in the prowl for a manager.

Although, his spell with the Spanish national team was not as successful as against his pedigree, his Spain side shone glintingly at the Euro 2020.

In the cabinet of the Spaniard is an impressive collection of trophies during his time at Barcelona, winning the Champions League, two La Liga titles and three Copa del Rey.

It has been six years since his last job in club football, and not having managed in the Premier League before could be a shortcoming in his chances of landing the Chelsea job.

Despite that, Enrique’s proven ability to manage big sides buoyed by his tactical shrewdness is one of the few best Chelsea could latch on to for a change of fortune at Stamford Bridge.

Zinedine Zidane

Zidane is among the few coaches out there with an imposing resume that makes him, at any point in time, an irresistible target in the hunt for a club manager.

The Frenchman has been out of a job since finishing his second stint as coach of Real Madrid in 2021, and this is not on account of him being short of offers, but him repudiating a flurry of them from the likes of PSG and the United States national team – although many claims he has his ambition fixed on coaching the French national side.

Zidane has been there, worked with the ‘big boys’, scooped up the biggest trophies. A high-stake job like that of Chelsea should not be a far-fetched brief, even though the owners know having him could mean radical changes to the current Chelsea team – but that should not hurt if it delivers the goods, you say.

Julen Nagelsmann

Julian Nagelsmann has already outlined Chelsea job intentions after Graham Potter sack decision – football.london
The former Bayern Munich gaffer, Julian Nagelsmann is by far the favorite to fill the newly vacant position at Chelsea.

If he eventually gets the Chelsea job, he will be replacing the man who replaced the man who replaced him at Bayern Munich – and that is something quite interesting.

Although many points to his age as a disadvantage to a ‘demanding’ Chelsea job, the German, 35, has proven he is one of the most highly-rated coaches in Europe.

Nagelsmann’s tactical versatility stands him out among the pool of coaches available, and that could be an unignorable strength the Chelsea board could be lured by to snap him up.

Roberto de Zerbi

Though he has an outside chance of taking over from his predecessor at Brighton, the odds are slim that Chelsea will opt for another Brighton coach after the travails Potter took them through.

Reports in the media have thrown the Italian in the fray after posting impressive performances for Brighton since taking over from Potter in September.

De Zerbi’s quality as a manager is not in doubt any longer with years of experience under his belt, and proven successes everywhere he goes – topped off by the imminent qualification of Brighton for European football.

His style of play clearly aligns the popular Chelsea style, but the Blues will most likely at this stage avoid gambling with a manager with no experience coaching a big side.