Robert di Matteo is close to being confirmed as Chelsea's full-time manager.
As Sportsmail
revealed last week, the European champions have asked Di Matteo to
remain in charge after the Italian guided them to a stunning Champions
League and FA Cup double as their 'interim first-team coach'.
Contract terms have now been agreed -
and it is definitely more than a one-year deal that would look like he
was simply holding the fort until Pep Guardiola made himself available.
Getting away from it: Roberto Di Matteo looks set to finally be
confirmed as Chelsea manager for next season. He has been enjoying a
summer break from the game
On Sunday night both sides were hoping to complete negotiations within the next 48 hours.
Some
finer points of the agreement still need to be thrashed out but, after
considering his options, Roman Abramovich has listened to Chelsea's
players and asked Di Matteo to continue the excellent work he has done
for the Stamford Bridge club.
Best ever: Di Matteo led Chelsea to their first ever European cup triumph
Frank Lampard, who captained Chelsea
to Champions League glory, said in the aftermath of the Munich finale:
'I can't speak highly enough of him. Look at our record: what he has
done is no coincidence. He has created an atmosphere and got players
playing.
'The camp's very happy and you can see that in the results. Those results don't lie.
'The players were here anyway but
what he has done by bringing them together and getting results like at
Barca, and others before, has been amazing.'
Guardiola, who is enjoying a break
from the game after four years with Barcelona, has suggested he can be
lured back to football before too long - and was hotly tipped to take
over at Chelsea at the end of next season.
Source : DailyMail.co.uk
