Following an abysmal start to the season, Chelsea have sacked head coach Thomas Tuchel just six matches into the Premier League season.
Chelsea are expected to approach Brighton later on Wednesday for permission to speak to Graham Potter and are also keen to speak to Mauricio Pochettino and Zinedine Zidane, who are both out of work.
Chelsea invested a one-window Premier League record £273m to revamp Tuchel’s squad this summer, bringing in Wesley Fofana, Kalidou Koulibaly, Marc Cucarella and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. But Sky Sports News understands Chelsea have been considering this decision for some time and it is not a knee-jerk reaction to Tuesday’s Champions League defeat to Dinamo Zagreb.
The new ownership has had concerns for some time and has been looking at other options. Now they want a long-term appointment to move Chelsea forward.
A club statement read: “On behalf of everyone at Chelsea FC, the club would like to place on record its gratitude to Thomas and his staff for all their efforts during their time with the club. Thomas will rightly have a place in Chelsea’s history after winning the Champions League, the Super Cup and Club World Cup in his time here.
“As the new ownership group reaches 100 days since taking over the club, and as it continues its hard work to take the club forward, the new owners believe it is the right time to make this transition.
“Chelsea’s coaching staff will take charge of the team for training and the preparation of our upcoming matches as the club moves swiftly to appoint a new head coach.”
Tuchel said he was angry at himself for a ‘huge underperformance’ during the Dinamo Zagreb defeat – his 100th and last game in charge – and suggested his side are currently lacking hunger and determination.
Todd Boehly has axed Tuchel just three months after completing his takeover of the club. Boehly is still acting as sporting director having moved on director Marina Granovskaia, chairman Bruce Buck and technical and performance advisor Petr Cech this summer in a complete overhaul of the Roman Abramovich era.
