Chelsea have been handed a huge blow in their quest to find the ideal successor to under-fire boss Antonio Conte, with the Blues seeing a prime target seemingly pulling out of the race.
Roman Abramovich is likely to swing the axe on Conte regardless of the result of this weekend’s FA Cup final with Manchester United at Wembley and Napoli boss Maurizio Sarri has been widely linked with the role at Stamford Bridge.
Sarri has excelled with the Naples side this season, pushing Juventus all the way for the Serie A crown, but Napoli ultimately fell short in the race for the Scudetto as the Old Lady won their seventh Italian title in a row – leading to speculation that Sarri could seek a new challenge.
However, Italian outlet Corriere dello Sport report that Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis yesterday to discuss a contract extension and Sarri is poised to sign a contract extension until 2021.
The development, along with the likelihood of Mauricio Pochettino staying at Tottenham, means former Barcelona boss Luis Enrique is now the favourite to take charge of the Blues.
