THOMAS TUCHEL has been SACKED by Chelsea following their shock Champions League defeat away at Dinamo Zagreb.
SunSport has exclusively revealed Brighton boss Graham Potter is among the early frontrunners for the vacant position with talks scheduled to take place today.
Meanwhile Mauricio Pochettino and Zinedine Zidane are also on Chelsea’s shortlist, as well as Benfica boss Roger Schmidt.
Blues owner Todd Boehly has shown he is just as ruthless as predecessor Roman Abramovich after wielding the axe on the German gaffer.
A poor Premier League start has seen Chelsea lose two out of their opening six matches.
They scraped by against London rivals West Ham on Saturday, before being embarrassed in Croatia in their group stage opener on Tuesday.
And it proved to be the decisive result for American owner Boehly who has ruthlessly relieved Tuchel of his duties after less than two years in charge.
Incredibly, Chelsea’s clash against Zagreb was Tuchel’s 100th game at the helm since replacing Frank Lampard in the dugout in January 2021.
A Chelsea statement read: “Chelsea Football Club has today parted company with Head Coach Thomas Tuchel.”
“On behalf of everyone at Chelsea FC, the Club would like to place on record its gratitude to Thomas and his staff for all their efforts during their time with the Club.
“Thomas will rightly have a place in Chelsea’s history after winning the Champions League, the Super Cup and Club World Cup in his time here.
“As the new ownership group reaches 100 days since taking over the Club, and as it continues its hard work to take the Club forward, the new owners believe it is the right time to make this transition.
“Chelsea’s coaching staff will take charge of the team for training and the preparation of our upcoming matches as the Club moves swiftly to appoint a new head coach.
“There will be no further comment until a new head coach appointment is made.”
According to the Telegraph, Tuchel lost the faith of Boehly and his players.
And they state that his future at Chelsea would have been in doubt even if they had claimed three points against Zagreb.
It has been said that first team coach Anthony Barry will likely take charge on an interim basis for the meantime as Chelsea look for a new manager.
