In-demand Ipswich Town manager Kieran McKenna has addressed interest from Chelsea for the first time.
The Blues are, for the third time in under two years, looking for a new permanent manager after Mauricio Pochettino on Tuesday left by mutual consent, having among other issues disagreed with club bosses over their vision of the club.
McKenna is among the leading candidates for the Stamford Bridge vacancy, having guided Ipswich to remarkable back-to-back promotions from League One to the Premier League in his first manager role.
Hours after Pochettino's exit, 38-year-old McKenna was named LMA's Manager of the Year and Championship Manager of the Year.
Asked about interest in him, with former club Manchester United also linked, McKenna told Sky Sports: "When you do well as a manager, or as a player, there’s always going to be speculation.
“I know what we have achieved is not an ordinary thing, so there’s always going to be speculation.
“But that’s not where my focus is tonight, it’s about what we’ve achieved last season, what we’ve achieved over the last couple of seasons, not just myself but everyone at the football club.
“It’s been a wonderful couple of years and tonight’s about celebrating that. I know everyone’s looking forward to next season and I know the club’s going to be in a really, really good place going into that season.”
