Chelsea are said to be lining up a move for Argentina manager Jorge Sampaoli, with the Blues still open to the option of paying off Antonio Conte in order for him to depart the club.

Conte is still expected to leave Stamford Bridge this summer, despite the Italian insisting he will not walk out on the club – meaning Chelsea would have to pay him off on his £9m-a-year contract unless another club can persuade him to join them.

The Telegraph have reported that with Real Madrid’s decision to appoint Spain boss Julen Lopetegui as their new manager, it has all but ended any change of Conte departing the club to join up with another side. Therefore, it is likely that Conte will be sacked as Chelsea manager, leaving Roman Abramovich with a big decision to make over who will take over.

Former Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane, former Napoli manager Maurizio Sarri and former PSG manager Laurent Blanc have all been heavily linked with the job, but the latest spell of rumours this week suggest that Argentina boss Jorge Sampaoli is also in the race for the hot seat at Stamford Bridge.

Sampaoli was interviewed for the Chelsea job two years ago, losing out to Antonio Conte who won the Premier League in his first season. However, it is believed that the Blues would be interested in rekindling their interest in the Argentine, who will manage the likes of Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero at the World Cup.