Next Chelsea manager: Liam Rosenior, Roberto De Zerbi, Cesc Fabregas and Enzo Maresca's potential successors - ranked

Glasner is definitely going to end up at one of the Premier League's top teams sooner or later. The Austrian has taken English football by storm since succeeding Roy Hodgson as Crystal Palace manager in February 2024. After leading the Eagles to their best-ever points haul (49), he bettered that tally in his first full season at Selhurst Park (53), while at the same time ending the club's 120-year wait for a trophy by masterminding a stunning 1-0 win over the mighty Manchester City in the final of the FA Cup.

Glasner, though, is out of contract in the summer and the word is that he's determined to test himself at the very highest level. However, it's unlikely that he'd leave before then - and probably not for Chelsea either. Glasner's rage reportedly led to Palace pulling the plug on Marc Guehi's deadline-day move to Liverpool - so one can only imagine what he'd make of the nonsensical and constant comings and goings at Stamford Bridge!

Cesc Fabregas has all of the attributes Chelsea are looking for in a manager, in that he's a young (38), tactically progressive coach capable of working in the confines of a very specific project. The Spaniard has done an outstanding job since taking over as Como boss by leading the lake-side club back into Serie A and almost immediately established them as one of the best teams to watch in Italy. Fabregas is also a former Chelsea player, having helped the Blues win two titles during his five years - meaning he'd be a very popular appointment with the fans.

However, whereas the World Cup winner has a big say in how things work at the Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia - Fabregas is also a shareholder at Como - he would not be afforded the same level of influence at Stamford Bridge. It's also very hard to see him leaving Como midway through the season, given they're on track to qualify for European competition for the first time ever. So, while Fabregas feels destined to return to the Premier League at some point, it's unlikely to happen this month. He turned down Inter last summer; he'd likely reject any approach from Chelsea too.

A third tenure at Stamford Bridge for Lampard doesn't appear to make much sense - but when has a lack of logic ever been a factor in Chelsea's thinking? The previous regime hired the legendary midfielder after he'd led Derby County to the Championship play-off final in 2019, while Todd Boehly & Co. inexplicably brought him back to the Bridge in a caretaker capacity in 2023. Given Lampard is presently rebuilding his reputation at Coventry, we simply cannot rule the 47-year-old returning to Chelsea. Stranger things have happened.

However, the timing feels off here, as Lampard is poised to get Coventry back into the Premier League for the first time since 2001, with the Sky Blues currently eight points clear at the top of the Championship. Furthermore, while the fans still love Lampard, a significant chunk of the support would undoubtedly be underwhelmed by him being given a third crack of the whip, as he'd still not be considered a contender for any other top job in the Premier League.

From a neutral perspective, the most exciting candidate by some distance because of the potential for fireworks. De Zerbi is one of the most interesting coaches in the game today from a tactical perspective and can even count Pep Guardiola among his admirers. His Brighton side was a joy to watch in full flow, while he's also presently doing a good job at Marseille, who are third in Ligue 1 and reasonably well placed to reach the knockout stage of the Champions League.

We also know that Chelsea are fans of De Zerbi's work, as they interviewed him before appointing Maresca as coach in the summer of 2024. The issue, of course, is that De Zerbi is very much his own man, wants complete control over what he's doing and is never afraid to speak his mind. Consequently, he doesn't feel like a good fit for Chelsea at all - but his tenure would be anything but dull, that's for sure!

A bit of a left-field option but a legitimate contender according to reliable sources. Despite his young age (36), Farioli has long been regarded as a potential elite-level coach in his native Italy, where he actually started out as a goalkeeping coach, and already has plenty of experience, having worked in Turkey (Fatih Karagumruk and Alanyaspor), France (Nice) and the Netherlands (Ajax) before taking up his current role in Portugal with Porto. Farioli is also a disciple of De Zerbi's - which explains why Chelsea have taken an interest in his career.

However, it is worth noting that, for all his promise, the Tuscan has yet to win a trophy of any variety after overseeing one of the biggest bottle-jobs in football history during his solitary season in Amsterdam. Farioli also parted company with Ajax after that shocking conclusion to their 2024-25 campaign because he no longer shared the same "visions and timeframes" as his employers in the club's continued pursuit of success. Chelsea, then, might not be the right environment for him either...

It would not have been a surprise to see McKenna take over Chelsea in the summer of 2024. At the time, the Northern Irishman had just led Ipswich back into the Premier League after back-to-back promotions and the Blues weren't the only top team interested in his services. Manchester United were also considering bringing their former assistant manager back to Old Trafford. McKenna, though, elected to sign a new deal at Portman Road and although Ipswich finished 19th in the Premier League last season, their 39-year-old manager is still held in very high esteem at Stamford Bridge - particularly as it looks like the Tractor Boys are going to secure an immediate top-flight return.

McKenna is, therefore, a strong candidate for the Chelsea job. After all, he wouldn't have even interviewed for the position back in 2024 if he were put off by all of the potential baggage that comes with the role. However, McKenna doesn't seem like the kind of character to walk out on a club fighting for promotion that steadfastly stood by him during last season's struggles and a slow start to the current campaign. McKenna certainly seems destined to end up in a top job - just maybe not yet.

Iraola was at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday evening as Bournemouth boss; could he be asked to make a rapid return to take charge of Chelsea? It's certainly a possibility. Iraola was complete unknown to Premier League followers when he arrived at the Vitality Stadium in the summer of 2023 but he's now considered one of the best coaches in the top flight after twice leading The Cherries to club-record points hauls. Bournemouth are also one of the more exciting sides to watch in England - as underlined by the 2-2 draw with Chelsea that led to Maresca's dismissal - and that's in spite of the fact that Iraola has had to deal with the sale of several key players over the past couple of seasons.

With Antoine Semenyo also now set to leave, the 43-year-old would be forgiven for at least being tempted by the prospect of taking over a proper Premier League heavyweight like Chelsea. Bournemouth would obviously be loath to lose him at this stage of the season but it's easy to understand why key figures at the Bridge believe hiring Iraola would make for a smooth transition for the squad, given his footballing philosophy is similar to that of Maresca.

The obvious and most likely choice. Rosenior is currently in charge of Chelsea's sister club, Strasbourg, and doing a fine job. After taking over at the Stade de la Meinau in July 2024, he led the French outfit into Europe via a seventh-placed finish in Ligue 1 and they finished top of this season's Conference League league phase.

Chelsea supporters will obviously have their doubts about the in-house appointment of a 41-year-old who's never previously managed in the Premier League and was effectively sacked by Hull City because of his allegedly boring brand of football. However, Rosenior is very well regarded by the Blues board and has long been considered a potential Maresca successor. As a company man, the former full-back would obviously have no issue with the set-up at Stamford Bridge, making him the obvious and most likely choice to take over in the coming days.