According to media reports Chelsea have a shortlist of 5 should they need to dispense of the services of Frank Lampard, and Saints Ralph Hasenhuttl is on their radar to take over at Stamford Bridge after his good work at Southampton.
Such is the thinking at the so called Big Six clubs these days the stock of their managers goes up and down at a faster rate than the FTSE 100.
Only a couple o months ago Ole Gunnar Solskjaer looked to be on his way out at Manchester United and Frank Lampard was being touted for the way he was starting to take Chelsea back to their former glory.
But come the New Year and the fortunes of the two men are reversed with Solskjaer likely to push United to the top of the Premier League during January and after 4 defeats in 6 games Chelsea have slipped down to 9th and more to the point behind clubs like Saints & Aston Villa as well as level with West Ham United.
This is unacceptable to the Chelsea hierarchy and it is said they are monitoring the situation of Lampard and considering their options.
According to the Daily Mail, Chelsea have put together a ‘Bundesliga-heavy’ shortlist of potential replacements for Lampard - which also includes Hasenhuttl.
The media reports also say
"Chelsea are understood to be admirers of Hasenhuttl, however there is an acceptance that he would not leave Southampton in the middle of the season.
The Austrian is therefore not seen as an immediate option in the event of Lampard’s dismissal, yet if he continues to impress on the south coast he would be considered for the job in the summer."
This sort of contradicts the fact that they are ready to make an immediate change, if Lampard's job hangs by a thread as reports suggest, who would manage them whilst they wait for Hasenhuttl.
This suggests that the pressure on Lampard is media driven rather than from the boardroom.
Would Hasenhuttl be interested in the Chelsea job ? his track record suggests not, they are not the type of club he looks to be involved with, Chelsea are a club who sack managers on a whim, they want a manager who just spends their money and they demand instant success, Hasenhuttl doesn't chase money he chases long term success.
So Chelsea would not be a good fit for Hasenhuttl, now if Jurgen Klopp were to leave Liverpool in the next couple of years I would be worried.