Chelsea have held a “strong interview” with Luis Enrique regarding their managerial vacancy, according to journalist Simon Phillips.
What's the latest manager news at Chelsea?
Premier League owner Todd Boehly gave Graham Potter his marching orders earlier this month and soon after appointed Frank Lampard as interim boss until the end of the season whilst he continues the search for a new long-term successor behind-the-scenes.
The Spaniard was most recently in charge of his homeland’s international team and was quickly identified as an ideal candidate by the hierarchy in SW6, alongside Bayern Munich’s former boss Julian Nagelsmann.
Fabrizio Romano has since revealed that the 52-year-old travelled to the capital for face-to-face talks last week and claimed that he would be keen to take the job, and there has now been an update on the board’s stance.
Speaking to GiveMeSport, Phillips claimed that Chelsea view Nagelsmann as the current leading candidate but were mightily impressed by what they saw from Enrique. He said:
“Enrique was always seen as more of a backup to Nagelsmann and it seems that Chelsea will prefer to wait it out on him at the moment, rather than go straight in with Enrique. That doesn't mean to say that Chelsea won't turn to Enrique down the line. He's still a very strong candidate for the Chelsea role on a permanent basis this summer. But right now Chelsea have been trying to get Nagelsmann and when they saw they can't get him, they've gone to Lampard. Enrique certainly had a strong interview, so I wouldn't be surprised if Chelsea do decide to go for him in the summer."
Would Enrique be an ideal candidate for Chelsea?
Enrique is a hugely experienced manager having taken charge of 431 games throughout his career and considering his level of success, he would be the perfect candidate to take over the reins at Chelsea ahead of the 2023/24 term.
The Gijon native has won 253, drawn 89 and lost just 89 of his matches since the start of his career in the dugout whilst averaging 1.97 points per match, via Transfermarkt. The 4-3-3 attack-minded coach also knows what it takes to compete at the highest level for silverware having secured ten trophies, including World’s Best Club Coach and Manager of the Year, which shows that he constantly gets the individual recognition he deserves for the job he does.
Finally, Enrique being a free agent on the market right now means that the Blues wouldn't have to pay any compensation to secure his services so the hierarchy need to capitalise on the fact that he wants to take the job by getting him in the building over the summer.