Darren Bent has told Chelsea why one of the managers on their final shortlist shouldn’t be the man to take charge next season at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues are now in pursuit of another new head coach after Mauricio Pochettino left the club by mutual consent.
Interestingly, there’s some suggestions in the media that the shortlist has been narrowed down to four individuals already.
The Telegraph said on Thursday that Chelsea’s managerial shortlist includes Ipswich’s Kieran McKenna, Leicester City’s Enzo Maresca, Brentford’s Thomas Frank, plus a fourth unknown candidate.
Chelsea warned one manager could be a real mistake
TalkSPORT pundits Darren Bent and Andy Goldstein don’t like the rumours linking Ipswich Town boss Kieran McKenna to Chelsea.
It’s been suggested that the 38-year-old manager is too inexperienced to take on the huge position at the Bridge and it could be a “huge mistake” hiring him.
In fairness, McKenna’s current role at Ipswich is his first position in senior management. He’s achieved an incredible back-to-back promotion from League One to the Premier League in the last two seasons, though.
Bent told talkSPORT: “I love Kieran McKenna for what he’s done at Ipswich. That jump [to Chelsea] is too big. He’s never managed a Premier League game, first and foremost. Ipswich are a big club, but they’re not Chelsea.”
TalkSPORT host Goldstein later added: “To get a manager like Kieran McKenna, who’s not used to managing big personalities and big egos, straight away thrown in at the deep end, I think it’s a huge mistake if that’s who they go after.”
Why do Chelsea want Kieran McKenna?
McKenna should have his feet up right now, celebrating Ipswich’s latest promotion, before focusing on helping them in the Premier League next season during his first proper taste of the top division. Admittedly, he previously had a stint as an assistant coach at Manchester United.
Instead, his name has been flying around the media while some Premier League sides search for a new manager.
McKenna’s stunning record of success in the last couple of years must be an immediate reason why clubs higher up the ladder are looking at him.
Here below is his Ipswich record as their manager since joining in 2021 midway through a campaign in League One.
| Matches | 131 |
| Won | 76 |
| Draw | 35 |
| Loss | 20 |
| Points Per Match | 2.01 |
He’s done all this while coaching his Ipswich side to play attractive possession-based football.
Can he really step into the Chelsea hotseat and replicate that from day one, though?
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