Chelsea Sent Clear Two-Word Message by Exciting Manager Target

Chelsea’s squad have reportedly provided some key criteria for the next coach in charge of a divisive dressing room.

Francesco Farioli is closing in on the Portuguese top-flight title. | Pedro Loureiro/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images

Chelsea’s search for a new permanent manager has just gotten a little easier: Francesco Farioli can be crossed off the list.

The widely respected Italian tactician, on the Blues’ radar before Liam Rosenior was appointed in January, moved one game away from clinching the Portuguese top-flight title with Porto over the weekend, yet the first question he faced in his postmatch press conference revolved around the rumors of his potential move to Chelsea.

“Your name has been linked with Chelsea,” Farioli was asked. “Can you assure FC Porto fans that you’re staying?” The answer was succinct: “Yes, absolutely.”

The avenue from Porto to Chelsea is one which has provided mixed success for the Blues. José Mourinho remains perhaps the club’s greatest ever manager after swapping Iberia for England yet André Villas-Boas emphatically failed to replicate that success. Now president of Porto, Villas-Boas clearly has no intention of letting the coach who has steered his club to the brink of a first title in four years leave for anyone, let alone Chelsea.

Farioli’s shared stance suggests that it’s back to the drawing board for the Blues.

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Could Chelsea Give Calum McFarlane the Full-Time Job?

Calum McFarlane (center) has steered Chelsea to an FA Cup final. | Michael Regan/The FA/Getty Images

In times of crisis this season, Chelsea’s hierarchy have twice turned to the understated figure of Calum McFarlane. The club’s former U21 coach inspired an unexpected 1–1 draw with Manchester City during his first interim spell back in January and will have the chance to bloody Pep Guardiola’s nose once more after leading the Blues to the FA Cup final.

Should McFarlane pick up maximum points from Chelsea’s four remaining league fixtures (which could still come with Champions League qualification, however unlikely) and win the club’s first FA Cup since 2018, he would have put together a compelling case for a permanent hire—on the face of it at least.

The vacant managerial position at Chelsea is one which will be decided by more than pure coaching acumen. In the aftermath of Rosenior’s hasty exit, The Guardian reported that the squad viewed the short-lived coach as “too inexperienced.” This may have been Rosenior’s first Premier League posting, but at least he had 141 senior games at the helm of Strasbourg and Hull City under his belt. The FA Cup final will be McFarlane’s seventh senior game of management.

The same report claims that Chelsea’s players are clearly self-aware enough to recognize the “big egos” littered throughout the dressing room and so are hoping for the appointment of a “big character” to go alongside a strong résumé. While it has not been flatly ruled out, McFarlane’s interim tenure is expected to conclude in the summer.

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Interesting Summer for Managerial Upheaval

Andoni Iraola is not signing a new contract. | Robin Jones/AFC Bournemouth/Getty Images

Last summer was dominated the signing of strikers. Eye-wateringly expensive central midfielders reigned supreme in 2023. This year could be the turn of managers.

Oliver Glasner and Andoni Iraola have already confirmed their availability, with the latter widely reported to be another name on Chelsea’s shortlist. Both coaches should inspire caution among the BlueCo board, however, given their idiosyncratic styles flourish with a lack of possession which no elite club is afforded anymore. Gone are the days of Mourinho actively handing the opposition the ball and the “fear” which he thought came with it.

Cesc Fàbregas’s Como bosses have put their own manager up for sale. The former Chelsea midfielder may have downplayed speculation, but his exciting blend of free-flowing, high-pressing possession soccer would be a natural fit for this modern era of the Premier League. He also has a swollen trophy cabinet to placate the current squad.

The World Cup could also churn up a whole host of new coaching contenders once nations drop out of the tournament.

Unfortunately for Chelsea, many of the most high profile figures in the U.S. have already been chewed up and spat out by BlueCo (Thomas Tuchel and Mauricio Pochettino, most notably), although a return for Carlo Ancelotti under new ownership could be one (admittedly fanciful) suggestion to consider. As a serial champion during a trophy-laden playing and coaching career, the current Brazil boss certainly ticks the “big character” demands of Chelsea’s dressing room.

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