Max Kofler: Die Revolution

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Following the conclusion of the UEFA Europa League First Knockout Round draw in Monaco earlier this afternoon, the club have discovered their opponents in the last thirty-two will be AFC Bournemouth.

Bournemouth finished top of Group B to seal their progression into the knockout phases. They remained unbeaten throughout, as they finished ahead of Villarreal CF, Feyenoord Rotterdam and FK Kairat, respectively.

Last season marked the Cherries first ever campaign in Europe, as they finished sixth in the Premier League to qualify for the competition. Eddie Howe's side finished top of Group K, which consisted of SK Rapid Vienna, SC Braga and Fenerbahçe S.K., with Bournemouth only dropping points in a 1-0 loss against second-placed Rapid.

A 4-1 victory on aggregate against Turkish giants Galatasaray S.K. allowed them to reach the round of sixteen, where they later defeated Serie A outfit Fiorentina 4-3 over two legs. A quarter final loss to Athletic Bilbao on penalties brought an end to a memorable run for AFC and their supporters.

Howe's men finished sixth for a second consecutive season, securing their ticket for a second season in Europe, capitalising on Chelsea's poor season, as they finished eighth - much like they did in the 2018/19 season, after Manchester United struggled to a seventh-placed finish under Ole Gunnar Solskjær, who was later replaced by former Chelsea title-winning boss Antonio Conte, in April.

As such, this attracted interest in two of Bournemouth's biggest contributors over the previous two seasons. Callum Wilson and Lewis Cook departed the club, as £154,000,000 was recouped in sales.

Lured by the prospect of playing under former Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola, who was sacked at the end of the 2018/19 campaign following a second-placed finish in the Premier League, Callum Wilson joined Chelsea for £64,000,000 - with the fee potentially rising to £79,000,000. Wilson was brought to Stamford Bridge after scoring half a century of goals for the Cherries over two seasons.

Meanwhile, Lewis Cook opted to join Tottenham Hotspur for £61,000,000 - with the fee rising to £75,000,000 after add-ons. The 23-year-old has cemented himself as one of the Premier League's finest midfielders, as he racked up fourteen and eighteen assists, respectively, over the 2018/19 and 2019/20 campaigns. Additionally, Cook's form has impressed England manager Gareth Southgate, with Cook now having fourteen caps to his name.

Despite over £100,000,000 being spent this summer, Eddie Howe has failed to replace the outstanding duo, sufficiently. Andreas Cornelius was brought in from Southampton for £15,250,000, despite the Danish forward making just one appearance for the Saints after completing a move from Atalanta in 2019, spending the second-half of the season with Liga NOS side Sporting CP. So far, the former Cardiff star has scored just five times - struggling to repeat the heroics of Wilson.

The costly arrival of Jesús Manuel Corona from FC Porto has also flattered to deceive so far, with the Mexican failing to make an impact on the south-coast. Fortunately, the arrival of Adnan Januzaj from Chelsea for £28,000,000 has come to fruition for Howe, with the Belgian impressing since joining in July.

Currently sat twelfth in the Premier League after eighteen games, AFC have witnessed a decline in performances this campaign but continue to demonstrate their abilities on the European stage, with a 2-0 victory in Spain against Villarreal being one particular highlight of their efforts in the competition this season.

The first leg will take place on Thursday 11th February 2021 at the RheinEnergieStadion. The second-leg will take place a week later at the Madejski Stadium - home of Reading - as Bournemouth continue to upgrade the Vitality Stadium, which is due to be completed for the start of the 2021/22 season.

Replies

Justice: The goals are flowing in Europe, but Max will be concerned that only one of seven goals was converted by a recognised striker. However, the likes of Marius Wolf have really stepped up and hopefully they can contribute to the ailing attack at this present moment until a striker is recruited. Bayern are a tough test and not the sort of opposition you want to face at such challenging times, but the remaining three games present a great opportunity to collect nine points, should Koln take their chances.

LFC: I think inconsistent is generous! The inability to win successive games is a really precarious statistic and something that needs to be addressed. Draws aren't good enough, nor is losing to a side fighting to survive in the Bundesliga.

Maguire: There's a chance. You can never count anyone out, especially over two legs. Bournemouth will be a tricky side to outcome, but things could have been worse in the draw. The league form needs to improve if Koln want to secure European football again next season via the league. Given Henry's situation at Hoffenheim, I doubt he would fit the bill at the Emirates.

Jack: The Schalke result was disappointing because whilst they have certainly improved this season compared to last, they weren't threatening at all and we should have created more. But the Hoffenheim result was an absolute disaster. The Sevilla result was certainly decisive though and Max will be hopeful of continuing his side's journey in the competition against Bournemouth.

I think you'll be pleased with being drawn against Bournemouth, especially with them not having their own home ground. They're a good team, no doubt, but you may have avoided some of the big guns who have European experience!

Calling Cornelius a former "Cardiff Star" may be being to kind, more like former Cardiff flop It is interesting to see how Howe has replaced some very important players especially after the money they had. It is certainly a favorable draw, despite Bournemouth's run in the competition last year, their league standing certainly shows they aren't the same side.

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December began with a trip to the Allianz Arena for Köln, as they sought to improve their form ahead of the winter-break to move back into European contention. Tomas Soucek's equaliser six minutes from time was more than deserved, with the visitors having the upper-hand throughout the game, but lacking the finishing touch to take more than just a point from the league leaders.

Max Kofler spoke to the press following the game stating that he wanted his players to take confidence from the result against Bayern, but his side were unable to do so in a disappointing home defeat to mid-table side Hertha Berlin in a 1-0 loss. Central-defender Jordan Torunarigha was the difference between the two, as his powerful header from a corner proved to be the only goal of the game.

With qualification already sealed, Köln faced the side bottom of Group K to conclude group-stage proceedings. Unfortunately, a 1-1 draw to Jagiellona Białystok resulted in Sevilla capitalising as they took top spot in the group - with Munas Dabbar scoring in the ninety-fourth minute against FC Krasnodar to ensure their progression, as well as securing pole position in the group. Nicolás Fernández's equaliser seconds after Stefan Scepovic's goal was unable to propel his side to find a decisive goal.

Köln were later drawn alongside Premier League opposition in AFC Bournemouth, still managed by Eddie Howe, in the round of thirty-two.

Substitute Francisco Trincão was required to bail Effzeh out in another 1-1 draw, this time to SV Werder Bremen, with Köln continuing their poor form in the Bundesliga. Max Kruse initially gave his side an important goal, as Bremen continue their fight to remain in the top-flight, before the Portuguese winger found the net minutes after coming off the bench with a well-timed finish.

Despite a handful of poor results, Köln ended the first-half of the Bundesliga season with a 2-0 victory over Hamburger SV. With a number of unexpected rotations to the starting XI, Denis Drăguș ended his goal-drought with a strike in the twelfth minute, before Mario Pasalic doubled the lead in the second-half. The winter-break has now begun and the season is due to resume on Saturday 16th January 2021 for Köln against SC Freiburg.



Bayern Munich stretched their lead at the top of the Bundesliga to eight points, as they continued their excellent form over December. Bayer Leverkusen in second succumbed to losses against FC Ingolstadt 04 and FC Augsburg, losing ground on the now runaway leaders. Borussia Dortmund and FC Schalke 04 completed the top four as they sat a point further back of second-place.

Borussia Mönchengladbach and RB Leipzig occupied fifth and sixth position, with a whole host of sides within three points of the top six, currently led by Eintracht Frankfurt in seventh.

TSG 1899 Hoffenheim replaced FC Augsburg at the foot of the table. Thierry Henry was sacked at the start of the month, following a 1-0 loss to Augsburg. Swift to find a replacement, Roger Schmidt was confirmed as the new head-coach two weeks later. The former SV Werder Bremen head-coach was out of work for less than a month, having been sacked by his previous club on 29th November.

Augsburg were steadily building momentum after victories against both Hoffenheim and Leverkusen, as well as an away 0-0 draw to Hannover 96. Their only loss of December came in a 4-2 defeat to Europa League contenders Gladbach. They were now just a point behind Bremen in sixteenth.

FC Ingolstadt 04 had formed a five-point gap between themselves and Bremen, who were directly below them in the relegation play-off spot.

Upon their return from the winter-break, Köln will host SC Freiburg at the RheinEnergieStadion. A week later they travel to Borussia Mönchengladbach, before finishing the month at home to Hannover 96, who sit comfortably above the bottom three in fourteenth.

Replies

Justice: Bournemouth were one of the more favourable draws, indeed, but they still possess a lot of quality and will be a tricky side to overcome. They're effectively playing away from home in both games, though, so that could play to our advantage.

LFC: The club site may have generous with that label, admittedly. A lot of the money was wasted, I must say, he certainly isn't doing him any favours given some of the howlers he's made in windows of the past. At least Januzaj has worked out well for them! They're lacking an out-and-out goalscorer now Wilson has gone, so we're certainly facing a less potent side than last season.

It has been probably the worst 6 months in Max's short managerial career to date, but again the league is tight and a good run of wins will see you fly up the table. Hopefully the new year can see some improved performances.

Aside from the result against Hertha, a brilliant month of domestic football. That point against Bayern will surely have raised morale. Draws need to start turning into wins soon, however, but I fancy you to do what is necessary to get the job done.

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The home support cheered as the players gathered in celebration at the full-time whistle after a hard-fought victory, as the first-half of the Bundesliga drew to a conclusion ahead of the winter-break. As I joined them, the supporters kicked into second gear and roared louder in admiration for me. As I applauded and then turned my back to head down the tunnel, I felt a deep sadness. For the last few weeks, I was weighing up my future at the football club. The fondness and admiration I had for the club was still there, but the results were stagnating and I felt like I had taken the club as far as I could.

Throughout my time at the club, I had achieved great success and now I had finally hit a stumbling block as such. I was met with a challenge I hadn't yet faced as a manager and admittedly, I was struggling to find the answers to address our problems - beside the very obvious. I wasn't blind to the fact we needed the transfer window to come around, so we could recruit a new striker in a bid to solve our woes in-front of goal.

Despite the relationship myself and club president, Alexander Wehrle, had built since he took post last year, he was adamant he would not be given me the additional funds I required in-order to facilitate a move for the striker I wanted. Talks had taken place between myself and Director of Football, Armin Veh, and we were keen on bringing in Hoffenheim and Croatian forward Andrej Kramaric, who was said to be available for around £15,000,000.

Due to Hoffenheim's current league position, we were hopeful that we could capitalise on Kramaric's situation. He was allegedly unhappy with the club's position and wanted to find a move elsewhere, allowing us to potentially attain his services at a cut-price. Armin was convinced that Kramaric would solve our issues, despite his own goal return dwindling this season, largely as a result of the poor form sustained by the basement side.

Now twenty-nine, Kramaric had only scored twice in the Bundesliga from seventeen appearances, but prior to this season, he was a proven goalscorer in the division having impressed at Hoffenheim since his initial loan spell from Leicester City in 2016 - which was later made permanent that summer, after he scored five times in fifteen appearances.

Very few players were able to boast of his level of consistency, especially in such a physically demanding league such as the Bundesliga. Since joining on a permanent-basis, Kramaric was able to score at least thirteen goals per season, establishing himself as one of Europe's most underrated stars, in the eyes of many experts.

Armin presented his case to Alexander, stating that the signing of Kramaric would "single-handedly solve our goalscoring crisis," yet his protests was in vain. The club president stated that he was unwilling to back us in the market, as we invested poorly in the summer, something which Armin didn't take too kindly to. He fired back at Alexander, but the authority figure continued to remain unphased by his complaints.

The board understood that I wouldn't be happy with this decision. With doubt already in my mind at this point regarding my future, I had nothing to lose and threatened Alexander with my resignation should he not fulfil my wishes. Not realising the severity of my threat initially, he laughed and stamped his authority on me, to which I replied, "If you're unwilling to back me because of a couple of mistakes in our summer recruitment, I have no problem with resigning." He seemed to gulp at my threat.

"Our recruitment has been excellent since I joined and even this summer, we executed some fantastic signings which have worked out excellently. If you're not backing me, I'm leaving." I threatened. Usually I would not be so blunt in my approach, but at this point, I was beyond frustrated because I understood that without funds to sign our desired target, we would only regress over the second-half of the season. I wasn't content being the yes-man Alexander wanted me to be.

He took into account my argument, but tried to explain his decision further, seemingly quick to brush over our argument, after all. "We need the cash, Alexander. Yes, our recruitment in the attacking area hasn't worked out - but you can't afford to punish our mistakes by not giving us the cash we required. We're in dire straits. We have the third-worst attack in the entire division - it isn't acceptable." I argued.

My assistant, Tom Cichon, who was also present in the room at the time of our impromptu meeting, raised his opinion and sided within myself. "We need to bring in Kramaric, sir. He has a proven record in the division and we would be silly not to bring in a player of his quality for such a fee - especially when we are in such a desperate position."

Alexander listened to Tom's additional comments, taking a slight sip of his coffee before placing it back down on the table. "I'm afraid we can't afford to hand you the extra cash. I have explained my position frequently and we're unwilling to sacrifice additional finances at this present time. I understand your frustrations, but that's final."

Tom shook his head in disappointment. "Max has dragged this club from the gutter over the past couple of years and this is how you reward him? I'm not surprised he is disappointment and considering his position, I am too. If you're going to support us - I'm resigning, too." Slightly surprised by Tom's comments, despite us addressing the situation numerous times beforehand, I supported him. Alexander tried to compromise with us, as a result, noting our obvious solidarity.

"I can offer you a small increase, but only marginally." He explained.

Insulted by his attempts to please us, I refused and with deep sadness, expressed my desire to resign from the job as head-coach. Tom stuck to his promise and resigned alongside myself. We walked out of the room, with Alexander looked down at the floor, perhaps realising what a mistake he had made. We had little sympathy. He had effectively left us with no choice.

Tom recounted the memories we shared together as we walked down the corridors to the car-park. Two years in this job seemed to feel much longer, but in such a positive sense because we enjoyed every moment. Walking away from a job unfinished pained me, but Tom reiterated it was the right decision for us both. We announced our decision to the staff and players, in whom were supportive and kind in their comments, despite the fact we had disturbed their break to address them personally. A number of staff I brought to the club later handed-in their notice over the following days, in support - something I admired, deeply.

As we approached our vehicles, Tom expressed his support. "You won't regret this, Max. You're destined for bigger things and one day, I hope to cross paths with you again. You'll have clubs fighting over you soon enough, trust me." I smiled and patted him on the back as we embraced, before getting into my car. "I'll see you again soon then, Tom!" I laughed. He smiled and got into his own vehicle, as we waved goodbye to our former employers for good.

Replies

LFC & Justice: I think you'll understand why I'm not going to read into your comments too much given this update.

Wow!
Firstly an excellent update, very well written and explained the situation perfectly! Secondly, I wonder where Max goes to now? He must have a massive reputation throughout the footballing world considering his World Cup win and how well he had started at Koln. I just wonder if the past six months are going to knock it slightly!

Looking forward to the next update!

Well that's the wind well-and-truly out of the sails now. It is a shame that the dipshit didn't want to give you the funds to continue fighting. However, the decision has been made. Max will have plenty more decisions to make in the near future, I just hope he returns to management soon enough.

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I had no regrets in leaving Köln. My resignation opened up a lot of new opportunities for me, in which I wouldn't have realised had I remained at the club and continued to struggle my way through the next six months. I couldn't continue to work alongside a chairman who was unwilling to support the staff who had given the club so much success over the past two years. I had built a culture between staff and players that accepted mistakes; but ensured the overriding message was that learning from them and striving to improve was key. Unfortunately, the same message didn't resonate with club president, Alexander Wehrle.

I left behind a squad that, on the whole, I loved and cherished. I had built a strong relationship with the squad - especially those who were a constant throughout my time at the club, such as Vincent Koziello, Salih Özcan and perhaps most notably, Timo Horn. The support I received from those players when I announced my resignation was humbling and I will forever have great things to say about all three. They all have fantastic careers ahead of them, whether they choose to remain at the club or move onto pastures new.

The supporters always went above and beyond for me and penning my closing statement to them was beyond difficult. I felt a tear in my eye when I concluded the letter with my signature, something I never believed I would be doing so soon into my tenure with the club. I still had another year on my contract, at least, and I always planned to see my contract through to the very end and then review my options at the end of it, deciding whether it was in everyone's best interests to renew it or not.

It certainly wasn't an impromptu decision from myself, like many considered. I had many sleepless nights and conversations with my closest allies, including Laura - who continues to be a huge support in my life despite her own issues - were frequent. Admittedly, I felt we were regressing under my management and that could have been blamed on a number of factors, which I won't totally disclose, at this moment in time. However, I will continue to make it no secret that I was extremely disappointed by the lack of ambition shown by Alexander, which confirmed my future wasn't at the football club.

I am a firm believer that everyone needs to be on-board for a football club to head in a positive direction - especially at board level. They control the finances and hold the power; they are effectively sovereign to every decision made. As such, it's difficult to work under somebody who, clearly, despite all their assurances, doesn't fully trust in you. Otherwise they'd support you by putting their money where their mouth is and not focusing on a small percentage of errors on an otherwise excellent recruitment CV.

Upon my resignation, Armin Veh - the club's Director of Football - reassured me he was disappointed to see me and Tom (Cichon) leave the club, but understood our grounds for doing so. Armin himself was thoroughly disappointed by Alexander - who in his words, was very disappointed in my departure and considers it to be a huge loss. The thought of Alexander realising his mistake gave me a brief sense of satisfaction, I must admit, should Armin to be believed.

A few weeks passed since my resignation and there were plenty of offers on the table, as I previously mentioned. I had very little indication about where my stock lie, beforehand, given I was solely focused on the task at hand. However, my unemployment opened the door to plenty of opportunities; in which would be of real benefit to both me and Laura, with plenty of interest in England and the Premier League - a league I have always wanted to return to, given it is arguably the best league in the world, but also gave me some fantastic memories from my time there as a player at Manchester United.

However, footballing reasons aside, the opportunity to manage in England would also present the chance to move back to England with Laura. A managerial position would allow her to return home and surround herself with friends and family, who she had previously left behind to accompany me in both Austria and Germany. With her mental state slowly improving thanks to the help of a mental health charity in the local area of Köln (who I am very thankful for and must praise the staff there), it is a fantastic opportunity for her, as she has always been open to returning home and being with her parents, once again. She has been restricted in her visits in the past few years, so I feel it would be very beneficial for her, especially at this stage of her recovery.

There were a number of jobs available and the interest wasn't just limited to England. Laura assured me that she would be fine with any offer I chose to accept, but I was always tempted by a move to the Premier League over any other. The move had to be the right one for all parties involved though, so I was careful in reviewing each job available.

There were three initial jobs available in England following my resignation. Those included; West Bromwich Albion, Crystal Palace and Leeds United - all in which featured in the Premier League. Leeds were the best-placed of the three, positioned in fifteenth after winning promotion at the end of 2018/19 season. Under the guidance of Kenny Jackett, Leeds more than settled to life back in the Premiership last season, finishing ninth before the former Portsmouth manager was sacked in early December with the club languishing in eighteenth, following a 2-1 loss to Burnley at Turf Moor.

Meanwhile, Palace and West Brom found themselves sat at the foot of the table, respectively, with the unattractive prospect of trying to find form to pull themselves out of the relegation-zone come the end of the season. Nuno Espírito Santo and Graham Potter both lost their jobs at the start of December.

I received no formal approach from any of those sides, but I was happy to wait for the opportunity to manage elsewhere. As mentioned, I was careful in my approach to finding the right job and as such, understood that I couldn't risk jumping in immediately, it would very much be a case of waiting for the right job to come up that suited my abilities and would further my career ambitions.

Soon enough, with January rapidly approaching and clubs desperate to find the right candidate to bring in ahead of the transfer window, so they could fund their newly-appointed managers with the funds to build their own squads, a number of jobs became available which were of real interest. I had no time-frame in my mind for how long I planned to be out of a job, but perhaps it wouldn't be too long...

Replies

LFC: Thank you. There are plenty of options open and I'm sure Max won't be limited to just those mentioned in this update. I supposed you'll have to continue reading to find out...

Justice: It was and the decision was far from easy for Max. He has put a lot of work into rebuilding the club. For it to end like this is extremely bittersweet, but perhaps it will open the door for him to explore his options and propel his career either further.

... COME ON SCOOT TELL US WHERE

Wouldn't go Leeds if I was you, heard they have a right hooligan of a fan in particular!

Max's thoughts are certainly interesting and I wonder if the move to England will come off as it will surely benefit Laura and her mental health to be in a country where she has family and friends close by. But the job has to be right first and that for sure is the most important thing for Max to get right.

Moving to England and fighting for relegation will be hard. But with January coming up to shape the squad and with Max's talent I'm sure he'll do well, wherever he ends up.

Well that's a shock and one i didn't see coming, but goodluck wherever your future lays.

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Former FC Köln head-coach Max Kofler has confirmed talks were held between him and Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich over the weekend regarding the vacant managerial position, following extensive links between the Austrian and the Chelsea hot-seat.

The 40-year-old Austrian has been vocal in his admiration for the Premier League, stating he would be open to accepting a move to the Premier League should the opportunity arise. Kofler, who spent three seasons with Manchester United between 2010 and 2013 - winning his first and only Premier League title in 2013, before retiring - resigned from his role as head-coach of Bundesliga side Köln earlier this month, following a 2-0 victory against Hamburg, after two and a half years in charge.

Köln were eleventh in the Bundesliga at the time of Kofler's resignation, three points behind sixth-placed RB Leizpig, who occupied the final UEFA Europa League place. Previously, the Austrian guided the club to the 2. Bundesliga title in 2019 to win promotion back to the top-flight in his debut season in management, before celebrating a seventh-place finish last season, as well as a DFB-Pokal final appearance. As such, Köln qualified for the Europa League.

The German side qualified from Group K, finishing behind Sevilla in a group which consisted of Russian side FC Krasnodar and Polish Ekstraklasa side Jagiellonia Białystok, before they were drawn alongside Eddie Howe's AFC Bournemouth in the First Knockout Round.

Kofler resigned from his role with a further year left on his contract, citing a "conflict of interest" between himself and club president, Alexander Wehrle, regarding the club's transfer budget for the upcoming transfer window, as the reason for his sudden departure. The Austrian was "disappointed" by the "lack of ambition and trust" shown by the elected leader, in whom has been in charge of the club for over a year, after replacing previous president Werner Spinner. Spinner opted against standing for election again in the previous presidential election - which take place on a yearly-basis.

Chelsea have been in-search for a new manager since Boxing Day following the sacking of Pep Guardiola. The former Manchester City boss was unable to replicate his form in the dugout at Stamford Bridge, lasting just under a year at the club, with a win percentage of just 46% from half a century of games. A 3-1 loss at home to Arsenal confirmed the Spaniard's fate, with the Blues sat sixth in the table, four points adrift of fourth-placed Spurs.

Guardiola was appointed in December last season following the dismissal of Maurizio Sarri. The Italian led Chelsea to success in the Carabao Cup, Europa League and UEFA Super Cup - as well as a fifth-place finish in the Premier League - but following a 1-1 draw to Brighton & Hove Albion at the AMEX Stadium, Sarri was relieved of his duties after a run of poor form, which resulted in the Blues falling well-adrift of the top four.

The former World Cup winner has also been heavily linked with a move to Italy in the past few days, with Sky Italia reporting that discussions between SS Lazio owner Claudio Lotito and Kofler have taken place. Le Aquile are said to be keen on appointing the 40-year-old on a two-year-deal. Lazio currently sit eleventh in Serie A, following three successive losses which witnessed them fall from sixth to their current position.

Lazio's 3-1 loss to league-rivals Inter brought an end to Alberto Bollini's brief stint at the Stadio Olimpico. The 54-year-old was appointed in June following the sacking of Rafa Benitez, but only spent 197 days in the job with a win percentage of just 41% from seventeen games.

After successive fifth-place finishes in 2016/17 and 2017/18, Lazio have been unable to qualify for European football in the previous two seasons under the guidance of Simone Inzaghi and the aforementioned Rafa Benitez, finishing eighth in the previous two seasons.

Kofler is believed to have an interest in the vacant post, but is said to favour the opportunity of managing Chelsea should talks continue to run smoothly over the coming days. However, the bookmakers still consider former Barcelona and Spain manager Luis Enrique as the favourite for the job, with the fifty-year-old still out of work following his resignation from the Spain job. Enrique resigned shortly after the 2020 European Championships.

Spain qualified for the knockout stages in convincing fashion, winning each of their three games against Belgium, Iceland and the Republic of Ireland, but crashed out in the round of sixteen following a 2-1 extra-time loss to Andriy Shevchenko's Ukraine, who went on to defeat England in the quarter finals before losing to France.

Enrique is said to be Chelsea's favoured appointment, with the Spanish coach having had experience of managing the top stars of the game after a three-year stint as manager of Barcelona between 2014 and 2017 - leading the club to UEFA Champions League success in 2015, as well as back-to-back La Liga titles.

Chelsea Under 23's manager Joe Edwards has been placed in temporary charge of the first-team for the upcoming trip to Cardiff City. The 34-year-old was required to manage three of Chelsea's games following the sacking of Maurizio Sarri. Edwards won all three, recording victories against Burnley, Tottenham and Bournemouth, respectively.

Replies

Justice: Patience is a virtue, my friend!

LFC: I've heard that, too. Apparently they were making gestures about a particular tragic event, too. Sickening if true.

With Chelsea interested, there's a strong possibility that England and the Premier League will be the next move for the pair. The possibility of managing such a top club would be a difficult one to resist. However, Lazio also present a viable option for Max. They have a lot of talent at the club, too. You'll have to keep reading, as I said in my last comment!

Syb: Who said anything about managing a club in the midst of a relegation scrap?

SoA: Things can change quickly in football. That can sometimes be for the best or the worst.