Chelsea have already identified Julian Nagelsmann as their No.1 target to replace Graham Potter as their new manager.
Potter’s miserable, short-lived tenure was brought to an unceremonious end on Sunday evening, just over 24 hours on from an insipid home defeat against Aston Villa.
‘Chelsea FC has announced that Graham Potter has departed the club. Graham has agreed to collaborate with the Club to facilitate a smooth transition,’ read a statement on the club’s website.
‘In his time with the club, Graham has taken us to the quarter final of the Champions League, where we will face Real Madrid. Chelsea would like to thank Graham for all his efforts and contribution and wish him well for the future.’
Explaining the decision to part company with Potter just seven months after paying Brighton a staggering £21million in compensation to hire him, co-controlling owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali said: ‘On behalf of everyone at the club, we want to thank Graham sincerely for his contribution to Chelsea.
‘We have the highest degree of respect for Graham as a coach and as a person. He has always conducted himself with professionalism and integrity and we are all disappointed in this outcome.
‘Along with our incredible fans, we will all be getting behind Bruno and the team as we focus on the rest of the season. We have 10 Premier League games remaining and a Champions League quarter final ahead. We will put every effort and commitment into every one of those games so that we can end the season on a high.’
Chelsea will now, according to Fabrizio Romano, swiftly turn their attentions to securing the services of Nagelsmann who was fired last week by Bayern Munich and, ironically, replaced Potter’s Stamford Bridge predecessor Thomas Tuchel.
The Blues will need to act swiftly given Tottenham have also made contact with Nagelsmann following the departure of Antonio Conte.
The likes of Mauricio Pochettino and Zinedine Zidane, also currently out of work, are likely to come into consideration, while Brendan Rodgers, sacked by Leicester earlier on Sunday, has had his admirers in west London in the past.
Chelsea are back in action on Tuesday night against Liverpool where Bruno Saltor will take charge of the team as Interim Head Coach.
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