Graham Potter emerges as frontrunner for Premier League job just hours after Chelsea sacking - Reports
Graham Potter has reportedly emerged as the frontrunner to become Leicester City's new head coach shortly after being sacked by Chelsea.
The English tactician was relieved of his duties on Sunday (April 2) following his team's 2-0 Premier League loss against Aston Villa. The Blues are languishing in 11th position with just 38 points from 28 games.
Leicester City sacked Brendan Rodgers a couple of hours before news broke of the Blues severing ties with Potter. The Foxes are embroiled in a relegation scrap and are 18th in the standings, earning just one point from their last six games.
As per the betting odds (h/t London World), Potter is 1/1 to replace Rodgers at the King Power Stadium. Former Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez (5/1), Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou, Nigel Pearson, Steven Gerrard and Ralph Hassenhutl (all 12/1) are the other notable names on the list.
Rodgers was appointed by Leicester City in February 2019 and led them to a fifth-placed finish in his first two full Premier League seasons. The Foxes, though, have been performing below par for most of the season and risk getting relegated to the Championship for the first time since the 2013-14 season.
Chelsea, meanwhile, are having struggles of their own. They could miss out on UEFA Champions League football next season despite spending a combined £566 million in successive transfer windows. Bruno Saltor will be the club's interim manager till they find a permanent replacement.
Julian Nagelsmann leading race to become next Chelsea manager
Julian Nagelsmann is the leading candidate to become Chelsea's new manager, as per transfer expert Fabrizio Romano.
The German was surprisingly sacked by Bayern Munich last month despite his team in line for a potential quadruple. The Bavarian giants won the DFL-Supercup, lead the Bundesliga by two points after 26 games and are in the quarterfinals of the DFB-Pokal and UEFA Champions League.
Romano tweeted:
"Julian Nagelsmann is the favourite candidate to replace Graham Potter as new Chelsea head coach, as reported yesterday. Nagelsmann was mentioned yesterday during internal discussions — Julian is considered a talented coach. Talks are ongoing to make best decision."
Graham Potter lasted just a shade under seven months at the Stamford Bridge helm. The former Brighton & Hove Albion manager did, however, ensure that the west London giants are still active in the UEFA Champions League, where they face holders Real Madrid in the quarterfinals.
As for Nagelsmann, the 35-year-old won the Bundesliga last season. He left Bavaria winning three trophies in just under two years at the Allianz Arena.