Frank Leboeuf said he would still like to see Zinedine Zidane become Chelsea’s next manager but was unsure whether the former Real Madrid boss and two other top managers would be interested in the position due to the club’s league position.
There have been few, if any, indications that Zidane is among the names on Chelsea’s shortlist, but he is one of the few available top managers out there.
Julian Nagelsmann, who has recently been out of work after being replaced by Thomas Tuchel at Bayern Munich, is widely considered to be the leading candidate for the Chelsea job, instead.
Based on Leboeuf’s comments, it is pretty clear that he does not rate the young German as high as Zidane. That said, he also admitted that Nagelsmann is the more likely option for Chelsea.
“I will go for Zidane,” the former France international told ESPN FC when asked about the managerial situation at Chelsea.
“I know that that’s what you want me to say.
“I have received texts since we talked about Potter’s sacking, ‘call your friend, Zidane… ask him to come.’
“But the thing is Chelsea are not going to qualify for the Champions League [next season].
“I doubt that Zidane would go to a club that would only challenge for the Premier League and not the Champions League.
“[This may also apply to] Diego Simeone and Luis Enrique.
“Then you’d have to go to, sorry, B list. So, Nagelsmann, maybe?”
It is harsh to call Nagelsmann a B-lister just because he relatively lacks experience in managing top clubs.
He is very young for a manager and, unlike Zidane, Simeone, or Enrique, he did not have the benefit of being a former top-level footballer which arguably helped those three earn managerial jobs at their respective former club in the first place.
It is true, however, that as Leboeuf pointed out, the fact that Chelsea will likely miss out on the Champions League next season could prove detrimental to their search for a new manager.
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