Antonio Conte is holding on by a thread at Chelsea. But factors inside and outside the club show that Chelsea is not close to prepared for life after him.
As the season draws to a close, clubs start to plan for the future. For some, this means a new manager. For others, it means preparing transfer plans. There are those who are doing both. But regardless, a club must have a clear plan for the future. Clubs without one will be beaten to every target and will have to settle for leftovers.
Chelsea are currently the club without a plan. If the club is looking for change, they will need one soon. Right now, there is no indication that there is even an inkling of one. Factors inside and outside the club put Chelsea behind their rivals.
If the club is to sack Antonio Conte, they will need a high quality manager to replace him. The issue is that the Blues are not searching in a vacuum.
Unai Emery is expected to be sacked after failing to advance in the Champions League. The opponent that knocked him out, Zinedine Zidane, is on rocky ground. He could see himself unemployed if he fails to lead Real Madrid to an unprecedented third Champions League title in as many years.
So suddenly, there are two clubs looking for managers that the Blues simply cannot complete with. If Conte is available, he will be high on the shortlist of both. Preferred Chelsea target Luis Enrique is unlikely to feature on Real Madrid’s shortlist, but he is sure to be near the top of Paris Saint Germain’s.
There is also the case of Arsenal and Arsene Wenger’s time coming to an end. It would not be surprising to see him continue for another year. But if he does not, they will likely target the same managers as Chelsea. Thomas Tuchel’s availability is supposedly an enticing prospect for both London clubs. That is not to mention that Bayern Munich are also keen on the German.
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But the biggest reason Chelsea will be at a disadvantage against other clubs in the search for a manager is the lack of a vision. PSG, Real Madrid, and even Arsenal all have an overarching vision year to year. With Michael Emenalo gone, the Blues have none. The board is handling the vision but it is from a pure business perspective.
That means that if Chelsea sack Conte, and still do not have a technical director (which they ashamedly do not even have a link to one currently), the club will be facing a hard reset with no idea as to what comes next. The rivals in the hunt for managers will all have a plan for a new manager and the transfer market. The Blues are two steps behind them currently.
The Blues have only themselves to blame if they sack Conte and fail to hire a good manager in his place. They will only have themselves to blame for having another hodgepodge transfer market with no technical director providing vision.
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The Blues are not ready for life after Conte. Because of it, they may find themselves spiraling down with little hope in the coming years.