Luis Enrique has flown to London for talks on taking over the manager’s job at Chelsea, sources told ESPN.
The former Barcelona and Spain coach arrived in London on Wednesday morning for discussions about the position — vacant since Graham Potter was sacked on Sunday after seven months in charge — with Chelsea keen to hear his assessment of their squad.
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Luis Enrique is not the only option to take over at Stamford Bridge, sources said, with other names in the frame, but the club have viewed him as a priority candidate for some time.
More than a month ago, sources told ESPN that Chelsea had him in mind in the event that Potter lost his job before the end of the season.
Chelsea are in 11th place in the Premier League — 11 points off the top four — after a 0-0 home draw with Liverpool on Tuesday, after significant investment in the squad in the last two transfer windows.
They play Real Madrid in the Champions League quarterfinals this month, with the first leg to come at the Bernabeu on April 12.
Luis Enrique, 52, has been out of work since leaving the Spain job following their disappointing showing at the World Cup, where they were eliminated on penalties by Morocco in the round of 16.
He had been Spain coach since 2018, taking them to the Euro 2020 semifinals — beaten by Italy on penalties — and the 2021 Nations League final, where they lost to France.
The Spaniard won the Champions League with Barcelona in 2015, as well as two LaLiga titles and three Copas del Rey, including a historic 2015 treble.
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Sources told ESPN that Luis Enrique had been monitoring the situations at Chelsea and Atletico Madrid — where coach Diego Simeone has come under pressure this season — as he awaits his next move.
With Atletico’s form improving, his attention turned to the Premier League and the prospect of taking charge at a top club, sources said.
Despite links with the manager’s job at Tottenham after Antonio Conte left by mutual consent last month, sources told ESPN that he was focused on Chelsea.
“I follow the Premier [League] above all, because I would like to go to England to work,” Luis Enrique told Cadena SER radio last week. “I wouldn’t go to any team, but one that could do important things, which greatly reduces the number.”
