Chelsea's search for a new head coach is undoubtedly already having a big affect on the club's summer transfer plans.
The club are on searching to fill the role that has been vacant ever since Graham Potter was sacked earlier in the month. Bruno Saltor took charge of one game before Frank Lampard was brought back to Stamford Bridge on an interim basis to try and turn the side's fortunes around.
However, that hasn't been the case thus far. Lampard has taken charge of four matches in all competitions and Chelsea have been beaten in each one of those games. Behind the scenes, the club are working tirelessly to ensure they get the appointment process right this time and choose the right man to spearhead their ambitious long-term project.
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Mauricio Pochettino appears to be the current front-runner for the job with Chelsea holding positive talks with the Argentine recently. The 51-year-old has been out of a job since last summer after he was let go by Paris Saint-Germain despite winning the club the Ligue 1 title the season before.
football.london understands Pochettino is keen to return to England, just under four years after being shockingly sacked by Tottenham after half a decade in north London. Chelsea, though, are not close to appointing anyone as the club's new head coach and will continue to do their due diligence to ensure they get this significant process right.
Any new head coach will play a huge part in what is set to be a hugely important summer period for the Blues. The club have a number of players who are set for the exit door when the season ends as Chelsea look to balance the books after two really expensive transfer windows under Todd Boehly.
The likes of Mason Mount, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Conor Gallagher, Hakim Ziyech, Christian Pulisic, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, and others, could all leave Stamford Bridge when the summer transfer window opens. N'Golo Kante's contract situation is yet to be resolved, with the Frenchman's deal set to expire in June but there is still a confidence from both sides that the 32-year-old will extend his stay in west London, football.london understands.
Mount remains a big target for Liverpool, with both Manchester clubs having also showed an interest. Liverpool have held talks with Mount and his entourage over a move to Anfield, with the England international set to enter the final 12 months of his contract when June comes around.
If Chelsea can appoint a permanent head coach between now and then, then it could have a big impact on whether Mount stays or not. At the time of writing, it looks as if Mount will leave Chelsea as the club looking to be more decisive when it comes to players in the latter stages of their contracts. The same applies for Gallagher.
The 23-year-old will enter the final two years of his deal at the end of June and has plenty of interest in his signature. Despite playing 28 times in the Premier League this season, the majority of those appearances have been from the bench. Gallagher has also been used in numerous different roles across the pitch and has failed to live up to expectations following a successful loan spell at Crystal Palace last season.
Gallagher is not desperate to leave Chelsea, football.london understands, and any decision could be affected by who takes over the first-team squad in the coming days, weeks or months. That could be the same with a number of players linked with a move away this summer.
Although there are a number of players expected to leave the club, there will still be incomings at Stamford Bridge. The Blues are looking to sign at least one more central midfielder as they continue their rebuild following Enzo Fernandez's record-breaking move in the January transfer window. A central striker is also being looked at but this will depend heavily on who is appointed as the new permanent head coach and how they like to play.
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