Chelsea urged to snub Nagelsmann for 'real deal manager'

Stuart Telford

• 16 Apr 2023 03:43 CDT
• 3 min read

Chelsea have been linked with a move for former Bayern Munich manager Julian Nagelsmann, but Brighton's Robert De Zerbi would be a better solution according to Tim Sherwood.

Chelsea are already on their third manager of the Todd Boehly era, with Frank Lampard's caretaker reign following on from Thomas Tuchel - the man who replaced him in 2021 - and latterly Graham Potter.

Lampard is only in interim charge this time, and his chances of getting the job on a permanent basis have got off to a poor start, with three consecutive defeats against Wolves, Real Madrid and Brighton.

READ: 'Sacked in the morning' - Brighton fans mock Lampard

A whole host of the game's top coaches have been linked with the job for next season, with Nagelsmann and former Barcelona and Spain boss Luis Enrique at the front of the queue, but former Tottenham Hotspur manager Sherwood thinks Brighton's Roberto De Zerbi should get the role.

Sherwood: 'Just go and get him!'

"That man in your picture there [De Zerbi], I don’t know what Chelsea are waiting for," he told Premier League Productionsafter the Seagulls' 2-1 win at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. "They need a manager, just go and get him.

"I don’t want to sell Brighton's manager again. The only reason why Chelsea might not go for him is that Graham Potter has let them down. But this guy is the real deal. He is the real deal manager. They got £21 million for the other manager and he wasn't any good."

READ: Mudryk backed to succeed at Chelsea by former boss De Zerbi

De Zerbi's victory over Chelsea last weekend means that he has a 51.7 percent win ratio with Brighton - 13 higher than Potter's was, albeit the Englishman was in charge for three years, accounting for some of the Italian's statistical noise.

Including Potter's appointment, Chelsea have spent more than €630m on players and managers since Boehly replaced Roman Abramovich in ownership of the West London club last May.