Chelsea manager Antonio Conte hasn’t even left his position yet, but the identity of his replacement seems to be coming into very clear focus. Laurent Blanc, according to a Sky Sports UK report getting a lot of traction in the Italian media, will become the next Blues boss. Gazetta Dello Sport writes that the: “French coach is in fact one step away from signing his new contract with the Abramovich club.”
Meanwhile Calciomercato claims that the former Paris Saint-Germain leader is in pole position for the gig adding that “The French entourage is meeting with the Blues management right now.”
Blanc firma con il Chelsea: è naufragata la pista Sarri #calciomercato https://t.co/XvvwpPBPqC pic.twitter.com/9thoE7aE8X
— La Gazzetta dello Sport (@Gazzetta_it) June 3, 2018
Blanc hasn’t managed since his spell at PSG ended in 2016, but he became a very strong front-runner for the position, once the prospects of acquiring the first choice, former Napoli manager Maurizio Sarri, dissipated. The Serie A side insisted that Chelsea buy out Sarri from his final two years at the club, but the deadline to exercise his release clause, worth 8 million Euro, was not met.
While Laurent Blanc is far and away the leading candidate, another name often being mentioned is former Chelsea coach Avram Grant. While Chelsea appear to be moving very rapidly on the 52-year-old former France national team and Bordeaux manager, don’t be surprised if it takes awhile before this deal is actually finalized.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net and TheBank.News, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, currently contributes regularly to WGN CLTV and the Tribune company’s blogging community Chicago Now.
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