Chelsea Football Club is reportedly considering Roberto De Zerbi as a potential candidate to replace Mauricio Pochettino, who recently left Stamford Bridge after only one season. Despite leading the club to European qualification, Pochettino's sudden departure has left Chelsea on the hunt for a new manager.
According to The Telegraph, Chelsea has narrowed down their search to four candidates. These include Leicester's Enzo Maresca, Ipswich's Kieran McKenna and Brentford's Thomas Frank. However, there has been no official confirmation whether or not De Zerbi is indeed the fourth unnamed coach on this shortlist.
The Italian tactician and former Brighton manager hasn't been ruled out yet but is currently considered an "outlier". If Chelsea were to sign De Zerbi, they could owe Brighton around £5million in compensation - significantly less than the £15m he would have cost if he was still working at Amex Stadium.
Internal support to different names
De Zerbi would need to demonstrate his ability to work within club's structure and cooperate with Chelsea sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart. This requirement comes after his expressed frustration with Brighton's model last season which led many within football circles viewing him as a challenging character.
Despite these considerations, there remains no clear favourite in this managerial race at Stamford Bridge. Maresca, McKenna and Frank all have internal support within Chelsea. Joe Shields, Director of Recruitment and Talent worked with Maresca at Manchester City when Maresca was Pep Guardiola's assistant manager when Cole Palmer was under him.
McKenna’s impressive progress at Ipswich has caught the attention of Premier League giants for some time now while incoming set-piece specialist Bernardo Cueva has previously worked closely with Frank at Brentford.
De Zerbi's connection to Chelsea
Despite being an outlier, De Zerbi is not a stranger to Chelsea. He is well known by director of global recruitment Sam Jewell as they worked together at Brighton. Additionally, Moises Caicedo played under him last season and Mykhailo Mudryk, the Italian head coach, has a long-standing relationship with De Zerbi from their time together at Shakhtar.
As the search continues for Pochettino's replacement, it remains to be seen who will take up the reins at Stamford Bridge next term. Whether it will be one of the three Premier League managers or Roberto De Zerbi remains a topic of intense speculation among sports fans and sports betting enthusiasts alike.
