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Chelsea have been busy in the last couple of weeks in their search for a new manager as Antonio Conte's stint in London is on the brink of coming to an end as soon as the Board finds his replacement.
It looked certain for a significant period of time that the Blues had found Maurizio Sarri as the ideal successor to take over in the summer. However, there has been a major twist as Chelsea have been scouting other alternatives to the former Napoli boss as a lot of apprehensions surround the club prior to the opening of the transfer window.
On that note, here are the top transfer stories of the day pertaining to Chelsea:
Blues hold talks with Fulham Boss
The hunt for a new manager continues at Chelsea as the newest candidate to turn up in the Board's shortlist is current Fulham manager, Slavisa Jokanovic, the Metro UK claims.
The Serbian has been in charge of The Cottagers for nearly three years and led Fulham's triumphant return to the Premier League following a 1-0 win over Aston Villa in the Championship Playoff Final.
Jokanovic is familiar with Chelsea from his two-year stint as a player back in the early 2000s. The 49 year old held a meeting with the Blues to take over in the summer as the club seemed to have dropped their interest in Maurizio Sarri as they refused to meet the Italian's £7 million release clause, as per The Guardian.
Slavisa Jokanovic is an out of the box target but it is important that Chelsea target a well established and highly experienced top European manager if their aim is to reclaim their throne in the Premier League and challenge for silverware next season.
Blues eye Bordeaux sensation
According to the Metro UK, Chelsea are the latest entry into the market for highly rated Brazilian winger Malcom. The Bordeaux star has three years left on his contract with the French club and is available for a fee of £44 million.
Malcom has attracted huge attention from numerous European clubs this year and was linked with a January move to North London rivals Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur. The Brazilian racked up 12 goals and seven assists in Ligue 1 last season having played 38 matches in all competitions.
The 21 year old's performances have also altered interest from Liverpool as the Blues are set to be engaged in the middle of a tightly contested battle from their league rivals and other major clubs in the continent to acquire his services.
Malcom is naturally a right-sided winger but possesses great versatility in the attacking half of the pitch as he can drift on to the left as well as play the role of a number 10 or a secondary striker.
Treble Winning Boss in Pole Position to land Chelsea Job
Chelsea's list in the search for a new head coach keeps growing as several unlikely names have come up in recent days But, a new frontrunner has finally emerged and it is none other than former Barcelona manager Luis Enrique, according to The Sun.
Enrique has been out of work since leaving Barcelona last season in 2017 and was on the shortlist of Arsenal as well before the Gunners opted to appoint Unai Emery. The Spaniard has overtaken his competitors in the race to land the prestigious job at Stamford Bridge.
The news comes in after the Blues failed to land an agreement with Napoli over Maurizio Sarri and were not inclined on meeting the 59 year old's £7 million release clause as his contract was due to expire in 2020.
Following Carlo Ancelotti's appointment by the Naples club, Sarri looked the clear favourite to take over in West London as the talks had begun with his representatives and the Italian had already lined up his transfer targets that included several Napoli stars who would be willing to follow him to England.
But now that he has fallen out of favour amongst the Chelsea Board, it comes as a huge blow for Sarri as he had set his heart on a move to Stamford Bridge.
This has paved way for Luis Enrique to be in line to succeed Antonio Conte since negotiations will be less stressful with the 48 year old as the Blues had kept an eye on him since early 2018 and talks have reopened with a deal likely to take place in the coming days.
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