The Atletico Madrid boss has been one of the most sought-after managerial coaches since leading the Spaniards to La Liga glory in 2014.
Atletico Madrid head coach Diego Simeone is reportedly not interested in succeeding Antonio Conte at Chelsea but would ‘consider’ an approach from Manchester United.
According to The Times, Simeone is coveted by the Chelsea hierarchy with the Premier League club making preparations for Conte’s possible departure in the summer. However, the 47-year-old Argentine has reportedly ruled himself out of the running to take over at Stamford Bridge, with a limited grasp of the English language said to be a major contributing factor in his decision.
Despite that being a potential stumbling block to working in the Premier League, though, Simeone would reportedly favour a move to Manchester United. According to the Times’ report, Simeone would seriously consider an approach from United but Jose Mourinho last week ended speculation over his own future by signing a new contract until 2020.
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Simeone remains one of the most highly-regarded coaches in European football. The former Inter Milan and Lazio midfielder made waves across the continent in 2014 when he broke the Real Madrid-Barcelona duopoly at the La Liga summit. He also led the club to the Champions League in 2014 and 2016, losing out to rivals Real both times. The Times claim that Simeone held talks about succeeding David Moyes as United boss in April 2014 before the club eventually plumped for Louis van Gaal.
Simeone, a three-time La Liga coach of the year, has been heavily linked with a move back to Inter in the future, but still has two and a half years left on his contract at the Wanda Metropolitano.
As for Chelsea, Conte’s future continues to be intensely scrutinised. The Italian, who led the Blues to the Premier League title in his first season in charge last year, has been outspoken about what he sees as unsatisfactory transfer business recently while claiming that he is happy to see out the final 18 months of his contract. There have been reports recently, however, that the hierarchy is running out of patience with the former Juventus boss and pressure is mounting following a shock 3-0 home defeat to Bournemouth on Wednesday.
Chelsea now face a daunting run of fixtures later this month including home and away Champions League last-16 ties against Barcelona as well as trips to face Manchester United and Manchester City.
