| Di Matteo Favourite for Chelsea Job after Champions League Victory |
Chelsea interim manager Roberto Di Matteo has been installed by bookmakers as the odds on favourite for the Stamford Bridge job after guiding the club to Champions League glory over Bayern Munich on the weekend.William Hill has listed Di Matteo as 1/2 favourite to land the Chelsea job on a permanent basis after their penalty shoot out win against the Bundesliga side on Saturday night.
Bayern Munich looked to have sealed a deserved win when Thomas Mueller headed the ball past Petr Cech to give the German side a 1-0 lead with minutes to go. However, Didier Drogba fired home a mesmerising header from a corner in the dying minutes of the game to make it 1-1. Arjen Robben missed an extra time penalty for Bayern Munich after Drogba fouled Franck Ribery in the box. Chelsea then won 4-3 on penalties despite Juan Mata missing Chelsea’s first penalty. Cech saved penalties from Ivica Olic and Bastian Schweinsteiger before Drogba guided home the winning penalty to give Chelsea their first European Cup win.
Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck has already commented that Di Matteo is “in the mix” for the managerial job on a permanent basis after leading the side to European victory but other names are also being touted as potential candidates. It is also not certain whether Di Matteo would accept the job if offered to him.
Fabio Capello is the only other real candidate at 5/2 with William Hill after Pep Guardiola, one-time favourite candidate to land the job, ruled himself out of managing any teams for a year after he left his position at Barcelona. Guardiola is only 8/1 to do a u-turn and decide to stay in football management with Chelsea rather than take a break.
Jose Mourinho has been rumoured to crave a return to the Premier League. He is listed at 8/1 to be re-appointed as Chelsea manager. However, sources in Madrid suggest that he is keen to stay with the Spanish champions in an effort to win them the Champions League trophy.
Harry Redknapp is a shock candidate at 10/1. He is considered to be a dark horse for the job but the fact Tottenham have missed out on a Champions League berth after Chelsea’s win might be enough to tempt Redknapp away.
Other potential candidates include Laurent Blanc and Rafa Benitez at 14/1, Joachim Low at 16/1 and David Moyes at 20/1. Those punters that fancy a long shot could get Martin O’Neill at 33/1. Chelsea fans might wish to see an old hero return to manage the club with Brendan Rodgers available at 25/1, Gus Poyet at 40/1 and Mark Hughes at 50/1 with William Hill.
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