Chelsea aren’t having a particularly good season, which has raised questions about Mauricio Pochettino’s future at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues currently sit ninth in the Premier League table and the chances of them getting even a Europa Conference League place look slim.
Last season, Chelsea finished a lowly 12th in the table, and after considerable investment in the squad, it was hoped they’d do much better this time.
However, that hasn’t proven the case and, as such, Pochettino’s future at Chelsea looks increasingly uncertain.
This has led to speculation doing the rounds linking other managers to the Stamford Bridge hotseat.
And one particularly intriguing rumour claims that former Chelsea boss Antonio Conte has put himself in the running for his former job.
Calciomercato.it have reported that Conte offered himself to Chelsea a few days ago, via an intermediary who has ‘an excellent relationship’ with the Blues.
Fabrizio Romano has now provided an update on this rumour, taking to his YouTube channel to share what he has heard on the situation.
What has Fabrizio Romano said about rumours linking Antonio Conte to Chelsea return?
Put simply, Romano has rubbished the rumours, saying they are “absolutely not true”.
The transfer insider says Conte is waiting for an opportunity and is certainly open to a new job, but he hasn’t offered himself to Chelsea.
Romano said: “Antonio Conte… guys, I’m receiving many questions about reports from Italy saying that Antonio Conte offered himself to Chelsea.
“Antonio Conte is not offering himself to anyone. He’s not in advanced contacts or concrete contacts with English clubs, but this point about Chelsea is absolutely not true, Conte didn’t offer himself to Chelsea.
“Conte is open to a new opportunity, we know we have many rumours about Napoli, and for sure Napoli could be a possibility, but is not something done or agreed as reported in the recent days at all.
“So let’s see what Napoli will decide to do. Antonio Conte is waiting for an opportunity, but Antonio Conte is not offering himself to Chelsea or to anyone.
“(He’s) just looking for opportunities around Europe and he will only go when he will feel is the right opportunity for himself.”
Chelsea could do with looking elsewhere if they choose to ditch Mauricio Pochettino
Pochettino is a good manager who sadly has struggled with a really young team that has shown glimpses of quality but is nowhere near consistent enough to even challenge for Europe.
The Chelsea boss and the board will need to talk at the end of the season and decide what to do next. There’s a lot of work to do at the club, and Pochettino should be allowed to keep building.
However, should the Blues decide to twist rather than stick, they could do with getting a manager with a long-term vision and who would be a clean slate for the club.
Conte struggled with building a top team at Tottenham and he also has previous with Chelsea, so there may be an expectation he’d hit the ground running with them, even though that may not be the case.
