It is very hard to digest that Chelsea FC find themselves struggling to get good results this season despite having a quality squad. The club spent over $500 million in the two transfer window periods since the new owner Todd Boehly took over. Instead of these players delivering epic moments at Stamford Bridge, they’ve found it hard to gel with each other.
The reason is, already this season, two good managers have been fired for poor results. Firstly, Thomas Tuchel was shown the exit door after a disappointing loss against Dinamo Zagreb of Croatia in the UEFA Champions League back in September. Then Graham Potter was appointed to revive the team but failed dismally and ended up being fired last month. Frank Lampard was hired for the second time as the interim manager as the club continue the search for a suitable replacement.
Let’s look at the 3 frontrunners to land the job at Stamford Bridge.
Mauricio Pochettino
Mauricio Pochettino has been reported as the huge favourite to lead Chelsea’s side from next season. Pochettino comes with a winning pedigree as he excelled during his tenure as the Tottenham Hotspur manager. If Chelsea, who are out of UEFA Champions League spot contention look for a manager to build a team, then Pochettino is a match made in heaven. He proved during his time at Spurs that he can build a well-structured team that’s competitive. With no European competition next season, Chelsea will solely focus on domestic football.
His last managerial job where he was in charge of Paris Saint German( PSG ) ended on a bad note as he struggled to control the egos of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe. There’s no doubt that Chelsea has a squad full of stars, which is a similar problem he experienced at PSG. In total, his understanding of the English Premier League makes him a big favourite to take over at Chelsea.
Vincent Kompany
Vincent Kompany has been linked with both the Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea managerial jobs. This comes as no surprise though reflecting on Kompany has been successfully able to bring results as the manager. This season, he has already pushed Burnley unchallenged to gain promotion back into the English Premier League top despite only being in charge of the side in the first season.
The Belgian international though has denied being in contact with both clubs, stating his focus is to build a strong Burnley side. At the start of the season, Kompany signed a five-year contract with the owners aiming to see him being a future asset. But overachieving in his first season has made clubs attracted to him. He might have spent more years playing for a top club in England but the lack of experience of coaching in the league might come to beat him in the future.
A huge factor in Kompany’s success is the way he was able to transform the discipline and leadership skills he showed from his playing days to the sidelines. If Chelsea is looking to bank on a manager who is not afraid of making hard decisions, he stands a chance to win the race. One would ask if Chelsea are still to go for an inexperienced manager as they did with Potter. But only time will tell.
Luis Enrique
Luis Enrique has been reportedly linked with taking over as the Chelsea manager next season. These reports come as a shock to many fans as he has no experience whatsoever with the English Premier League. The former Spanish national team manager was last in charge of a club with Barcelona.
Despite, that lack of experience, his success as the manager makes a good reading. During his tenure at Camp Nou, he delivered two La Liga titles plus the coveted UEFA Champions League trophy. On top of that, he managed top-class players like Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez to combine well and delivered results. That alone shows how he can make his dressing room to be under one atmosphere. Recently with Spain, he was building the team from scratch and the good work was starting to show up. If Chelsea’s owners are looking for a serial winner with a proven track record of winning trophies then Enrique is their man.