One candidate for the Chelsea job has already had more than one meeting with the club.
Chelsea are looking for a new manager after Mauricio Pochettino‘s departure earlier this week.
The Argentine left Stamford Bridge by mutual consent after the Blues finished sixth in the Premier League table.
Since then, several managers have been linked with the Chelsea job, including the likes of Brentford’s Thomas Frank and Leicester City’s Enzo Maresca.
According to Fabrizio Romano, the latter is really eager to join Chelsea this summer.
Chelsea getting closer to appointing new manager
Pochettino has not even been gone for a week yet, but it looks like Chelsea have names that they would seriously consider appointing.
That includes Frank, who has reportedly spoken to the club.
Journalist Christian Falk recently claimed on X that Frank has had “multiple meetings” with Chelsea and was also considered by Bayern Munich.
Brentford supporters will not be happy, with Chelsea obviously their west London rivals. He was praised by Liverpool legend John Barnes in his first season in the Premier League for doing a “brilliant job” at the Gtech Community Stadium.
Thomas Frank and Roberto De Zerbi both on Chelsea’s shortlist
Frank is not the only manager with Premier League experience who Chelsea are considering.
Sky Sports reporter Kaveh Solhekol has reported on X that Roberto De Zerbi is also on Chelsea’s shortlist.
De Zerbi is available after leaving Brighton & Hove Albion at the end of the season.
The Italian did a good job there, guiding his former side to sixth place. He has also worked with a few Chelsea players before, including Moises Caicedo and Mykhailo Mudryk, so you can see the logic behind appointing him.
The biggest appeal about De Zerbi, though, is obviously his brand of football. Brighton’s 14.8 shots per game was the sixth-highest average in the Premier League this term, according to WhoScored.
If Chelsea went on to hire the 44-year-old, based on all of the above, it could prove to be quite a smart appointment.