According to reports from Goal, Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho will not be sacked during the international break despite the club’s poor results; whilst The Daily Mail claim PSG have joined the race to sign Eden Hazard.
The Blues’ seventh Premier League defeat of the season on Saturday, courtesy of Stoke City, saw them plummet to 16th in the league table – just three points above the relegation zone. That makes it three defeats in four since the club’s board publicly declared a vote of confidence in Mourinho last month, but his future is still safe for the time being.
Chelsea are hesitant to relinquish the Portuguese without a replacement lined up first and preferred candidates Diego Simeone and Pep Guardiola are unwilling to leave their current clubs midseason – Atletico Madrid and Bayern Munich respectively.
There are also concerns over Mourinho’s pay-out, likely to be within the region of £9.5million, with some speculating it could be cheaper to sack him once Chelsea are mathematically unable to qualify for the Champions League – although this is unconfirmed.
The Daily Mail, meanwhile, claim PSG have joined Real Madrid in the race to sign troubled winger Eden Hazard. The PFA Player of the Year has scored just once across all competitions this term and already felt the full force of Mourinho’s accusative finger, dropped for a 2-0 win over Aston Villa and hooked off during a 3-1 defeat to Liverpool, with tensions seemingly developing between player and manager.
The Belgium international was linked with a Bernabeu switch last month after liking an Instagram post mooting him as a Los Blancos target, but it appears Real’s interest is now rivaled by Ligue 1 champions PSG. The Parc de Princes outfit want a star-studded replacement for enigmatic striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, whose contract expires at the end of the season, and Hazard more than fits the bill.
The Mail, however, believe Chelsea will only sell for fees upwards of £80million.