Chelsea have had an inconsistent season this time around. After winning the Premier League title, the club have once again failed to capitalise and find themselves outside the top four spots in the league. Antonio Conte has cut a forlorn figure for major portions of this year, and there are reports that he might leave the club this summer. Despite the subpar campaign, Chelsea still have a chance to place their hands on the elusive FA Cup trophy.
However, the Chelsea hierarchy has been known to be ruthless with their decisions and hence the possibility of Conte being sacked at the end of the season is very high. Accordingly, there are a host of managers who have been linked with taking over the Chelsea job. Whilst regular names like Thomas Tuchel, Luis Enrique and Max Allegri keep doing the rounds; Di Fransceso’s name has emerged as a possible candidate too.
Moreover, AS Roma’s unreal run in the Champions League has boosted his chances of landing up a job at London. Chelsea are a club who demand instant results and hence it leads us to question whether Di Francesco is the right man for them. AS Roma have had an impressive season this time around, as they sit at the third spot in the league table.
However, the Italian side face tough competition from Lazio and Inter Milan to finish within the top four spots as there is little that separates the three clubs. A lot has been made of their run in the Champions League too, but I think that many aspects are deceptive too.
Roma were abysmal during the first leg of their tie against Barcelona and conceded four goals at Camp Nou. They managed to stage a remarkable comeback in the second leg, but Barcelona’s lethargic approach towards the game helped Roma’s case too.
Roma have some talented players and Di Francesco did well to encourage them ahead of the second leg. Again, his tactical limitations were on the display when he made his team play a high-line back three against a free-scoring Liverpool side yesterday. It was a major tactical blunder and one wonders if Roma would have been in a better position in this tie had Di Francesco played his usual 4-5-1 against Liverpool.
Even if AS Roma script another memorable comeback against Liverpool, Di Francesco needs to prove himself quite a bit before taking over such a high-pressure job as that of Chelsea. Maybe, the Blues could look for Luis Enrique, a manager who comes with a better profile and record an instant success in big clubs. Heck, he led Barcelona to a treble in his first season in charge at Camp Nou and hence his winning mentality would be entirely suitable for a club like Chelsea.
As for Di Francesco, well, let the man wait for a couple of years eh?
