After their recent loss against Nottingham Forest, Chelsea are currently 10 points adrift of the Champions League qualifying spots. With only three games left to play in the Premier League this season, it is now mathematically impossible for the Blues to finish within the top five.
Although the Blues are still in contention for the Europa League next season as they are preparing for the FA Cup final against Manchester City at Wembley Stadium on the 16th of May. A win would seal a berth in Europe for the West London side.
That being said, can you see this team, which has lost six in a row in the Premier League, beat Manchester City in a cup final? It is very hard to imagine.
Chelsea’s plans for the summer
Even if Calum McFarlane can pull off some sort of miraculous result against City, the Blues are already looking forward to the summer. They need a major rebuild before the start of the new season.
But as things stand, BlueCo. will need to fix their managerial problems before anything else. A lot will depend on the new manager’s style of play and vision for the future.
The Blue have now changed six managers, including interim ones, since the Clearlake-Boehly takeover in 2022. Liam Rosenior became the fastest head coach to be sacked by the club, lasting just 107 days.
The likes of Julian Nagelsmann, Xabi Alonso, Cesc Fabregas and Xavi Hernandez have emerged as probable candidates for the role. Also believed to be on that list is Andoni Iraola. The Spaniard recently announced his departure from Bournemouth after the end of this ongoing campaign.
Why Andoni Iraola might not be the ideal choice
Now, according a recent report by the Independent, Iraola is admired by the football hierarchy. But he is seen as a separate school from the other contenders. Chelsea would have to weigh up whether to commit to a deviation of approach if they ended up pushing to bring in the Spaniard.
Chelsea are believed to be looking for a manager who fits in their brand of football with more possession and dominance on the ball rather than the Spanish manager’s high intensity and direct gameplay.
Throughout the course of the ongoing campaign, the Blues’ vulnerability off the ball has been evident during the high-intensity games. Rosenior tried to implement a different style of pressing and failed. As a result, appointing Iraola could backfire for them.
