Chelsea are considering a shock return for Antonio Conte as they seek a permanent successor to Graham Potter, reports say. The Italian is on the market after his recent departure from Tottenham. And while Frank Lampard is poised to see out the season at Stamford Bridge, another return could be on the cards.
According to The Independent, Chelsea are considering turning to Conte – who previously spent two years at west London between 2016 and 2018.
The Italian is a free agent, having left Tottenham by mutual consent during the international break following an underwhelming stint.
The report says Chelsea are ‘curious’ to see what the 53-year-old could bring to the club in the event of any potential return.
Todd Boehly and the rest of the Blues board see Conte as a ‘winner’ who could bring ‘structure to a huge squad’.
And they’ve also supposedly made ‘initial contact through intermediaries’. Should all go well, there may be a direct meeting next week.
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Chelsea have also held talks with Luis Enrique, who has ‘greatly impressed’.
The Spaniard outlined his vision for a 4-3-3 should he take the job, but the Blues hierarchy are in no mood to rush into a decision.
Conte was a huge hit during his time with the Blues, guiding them to Premier League title glory in 2017 at the expense of Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City and Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United.
And he also guided the Premier League giants to the FA Cup trophy, too.
Chelsea are poised to bring Lampard back until the end of the season after the 44-year-old verbally agreed to head back to his old side.
And it’ll be interesting to see what they decide to do in the long run.
As well as Conte and Enrique, two other managers seem to be on Boehly’s radar as he looks to get his second managerial appointment right.
Julian Naglesmann has admirers, having recently been axed by Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich and replaced by Thomas Tuchel.
But while he’s been in charge of Bayern, RB Leipzig and Hoffenheim, the 35-year-old’s young age could count against him.
And Chelsea are also admirers of Mauricio Pochettino, who has been out of work since leaving Paris Saint-Germain at the end of last season.
Speaking in 2020, meanwhile, Conte shed light on hid departure from Chelsea – and insisted they failed to deliver the players he wanted.
“I asked for two players and we were very, very close after we won the league,” Conte said.
“One player was Romelu Lukaku, the second player was Virgil van Dijk, and these two players were very, very close.
“We were in contact every day and I always said that with these two players we would improve my team by 30 per cent.
“I think maybe we lost the momentum to bring Chelsea at the very top and then to stay for many years.”
And, on his relationship with Roman Abramovich, he added: “Sometimes, you can agree because the results are negative and sometimes, you don’t understand why.
“But I think you must accept and I keep good memories with Chelsea, the club, with Mr Abramovich, who is a very passionate man for his football.
“It was incredible, especially in my first season, because he was very, very close to me, asking about my football and my ideas.
“Many times he came to the training ground to meet me and I remember he wanted to watch the video about our game and about our preparation – the way we wanted to face the opponent.
“I think in my career, he was one of the most passionate men about football and I keep good memories about him and about the club, an important club in the world.”
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