Chelsea draw up new five-man sporting director shortlist

Chelsea reportedly have five names in the frame for their sporting director post with Todd Boehly looking to start interviews for the position ‘next week’. PSG’s Luis Campos, Sevilla’s Monchi, Atalanta’s Lee Congerton, Benfica’s Rui Pedro Braz and Leeds’ Victor Orta are all believed to be in the frame as the Blues look to rebuild their football operation. 

Chelsea have been on the lookout for a new sporting director since the departure of Marina Granovskaia as Boehly looked to put his own stamp on the club after his takeover from Roman Abramovich. Other members of the planning staff, including legendary goalkeeper Petr Cech, were moved on as the 49-year-old looked to rebuild the recruitment operation from scratch.  

However, the American’s quest to recruit a new sporting director has hit many stumbling blocks with top targets Christoph Freund and former Liverpool chief Michael Edwards having little interest in the role at the club. Bayer Leverkusen chief Tim Steidten was the latest to be linked however he now appears to be out of the picture. As a result, Boehly himself has been forced to fulfil the role in the interim.

Now, it appears the club have settled on a five-man shortlist with the Mirror reporting that Campos, Monchi, Congerton, Braz and Orta are all in the frame. Interviews are expected to start next week as the club gets closer to finally making an appointment. 

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Of the names on the list, Congerton may stand out to Chelsea fans the most given his history with the club. The Englishman was involved in the coaching and scouting set up in west London between 2005 and 2011 before leaving to become sporting director at Hamburger. He has since held recruitment roles at Leicester and Celtic prior to his stint at Atalanta. 

Orta will also catch the eye given his involvement at Premier League rivals Leeds while Monchi and Campos also have an impressive reputation within the footballing world. Less is known about Braz, with the 44-year-old only fulfilling the role at Benfica for just over a year. 

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The need for a new person in the role is pressing with the January transfer window fast approaching. Chelsea’s summer business has come under intense scrutiny with many onlookers believing they overpaid for the likes of Marc Cucurella and Wesley Fofana, while he was also hasty in letting the likes of Billy Gilmour move to new pastures. Much of this was down to Boehly, with the chairman taking the lead on most negotiations. 

It remains to be seen who eventually gets the sporting director role at Chelsea but fans will be keen to see someone come in soon with little time to waste before winter. 

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