Jamie Carragher has ruled out Antonio Conte as a candidate to become the next Chelsea manager while identifying Como head coach Cesc Fabregas as one of the most exciting emerging coaches in football, as the Blues search for a permanent successor to interim manager Callum McFarlane.
According to comments made on Sky Sports, via the Standard, Carragher was unequivocal about several names on the shortlist.
“You can probably rule out the bottom three, Mourinho, Lampard and Conte,” he said. “They’ve all managed Chelsea before, so I don’t see that. Fabregas does look like right now one of the new hot things in football, doing really well. Filipe Luis is doing really well, obviously had a spell at Chelsea as a player.”
NAPLES, ITALY – JANUARY 28: Antonio Conte, Head Coach of SSC Napoli, reacts from the technical area during the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD8 match between SSC Napoli and Chelsea FC at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona on January 28, 2026 in Naples, Italy. (Photo by Tullio M. Puglia/Getty Images)
Carragher says Chelsea is ‘broken’ as Como boss Fabregas emerges amongst leading candidates
Carragher reserved particular praise for Andoni Iraola before returning to the broader problem facing any incoming manager, a club he believes has been fundamentally damaged by its ownership.
“It’s shocking, and it comes from the top,” he said. “There are five or six really top players on that pitch and they’ve just been beaten by Nottingham Forest’s B team. Less than 12 months ago they were taking PSG to the cleaners. This football club is broken.”
On the challenge of attracting players, he added: “If I were a young player, why would I sign for Chelsea? They’d give me 12 months and if I wasn’t amazing, they’d buy another player in my place. How do you build a connection between players, fans and staff? It’s not there.”
The context makes Fabregas’s candidacy all the more intriguing. The former Arsenal and Barcelona midfielder has impressed enormously in his first adventure as a top-flight manager, guiding Como to the brink of European qualification.
His connection to Chelsea, where he spent two seasons as a player, adds another layer to what would be a compelling appointment, and Carragher’s endorsement will only strengthen his standing as a frontrunner.
Inter President Beppe Marotta confirms Manuel Akanji will be bought outright from Manchester City and ‘with all due respect for Cesc Fabregas, but Cristian Chivu was our ideal candidate.’
The Nerazzurri are celebrating their 21st Serie A title, the first to be achieved with Marotta as President, because he was only the director general when they last lifted the trophy in 2024.
MILAN, ITALY – MAY 03: Lautaro Martinez of FC Internazionale Milano celebrates with his teammates after being confirmed as Serie A champions following victory in the Serie A match between FC Internazionale and Parma Calcio 1913 at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium on May 03, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
“This is a glorious club that is accustomed to winning, so it is important that we won the title three times in five years with three different coaches,” Marotta told Radio Sportiva.
“It means we have created a winning sporting model.”
Why Inter picked Chivu for new era
MILAN, ITALY – MAY 03: FC Internazionale coach Cristian Chivu and Federico Dimarco celebrate after being confirmed as Serie A match between FC Internazionale and Parma Calcio 1913 at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium on May 03, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
Chivu was chosen after Simone Inzaghi asked to walk away just hours after losing the Champions League Final 5-0 to Paris Saint-Germain, as he had already agreed terms with Al-Hilal.
It was reported at the time that they had first approached Como for Fabregas, then turned to Chivu after being told he was not available.
“Inzaghi made the decision to try something different, so we asked ourselves which name to propose,” insisted Marotta.
MILAN, ITALY – MAY 03: FC Internazionale fans display a banner featuring Cristian Chivu during the Serie A match between FC Internazionale and Parma Calcio 1913 at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium on May 03, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
“We evaluated Chivu as the person who perfectly fit the profile. A coach is a crucial figure and, with all due respect for Fabregas, Chivu represents the ideal candidate because he knows what it means to play and win with Inter.
“He already had Serie A experience and took Parma to safety, so this is why we chose him. It’s true he didn’t have a lot of experience coaching, but we wanted to show courage with this choice.
“Now he is a winning coach who can stay at Inter for many years.”
MILAN, ITALY – JANUARY 14: Francesco Pio Esposito of FC Internazionale Milano celebrates scoring his team’s first goal with his Head Coach, Cristian Chivu, during the Serie A match between FC Internazionale and US Lecce at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium on January 14, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
Before taking the Parma job mid-season, Chivu had been working in the Inter youth academy as a coach, where he got to work with Francesco Pio Esposito.
That proved extremely useful when the youngster impressed at the Club World Cup.
“He asked us to keep Pio Esposito in the squad, another thing we are proud of.”
Meanwhile, it is confirmed that Akanji will be bought outright from Manchester City, as there was a clause in the loan activating the purchase option in case of the Scudetto victory.
“When we negotiated the loan, we did add an option to buy apart from the Scudetto too. We have great respect for him as a player and a man, so he will continue to be in our squad,” concluded the Inter President.
The race for Champions League qualification could go down to the wire, as there are now only five points separating Milan, Juventus, Roma and Como in the Serie A table.
The top four go into the Champions League from Serie A, and while Inter are guaranteed their spot in first place and Napoli have a fairly healthy lead, the other two are going to be very tight.
SASSUOLO, ITALY – APRIL 17: Nico Paz of Como 1907 looks on during the Serie A match between US Sassuolo Calcio and Como 1907 at Mapei Stadium Citta del Tricolore on April 17, 2026 in Sassuolo, Italy. (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)
The Week 35 fixtures have completely transformed the situation, as Milan lost to Sassuolo, while Juventus, Napoli and Como all played stalemates.
Napoli now have 70 points, Milan 67, Juventus 65, Roma 64, and Como 62.
Let’s take a look at the remaining Serie A fixtures for what could be a battle to the end.
Serie A fixtures
MILAN, ITALY – APRIL 26: Luciano Spalletti, Head Coach of Juventus, looks on prior to the Serie A match between AC Milan and Juventus FC at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium on April 26, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
Cesc Fabregas learned so much from the coaches he worked with, crediting Antonio Conte, Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho, but above all Arsene Wenger. ‘Conte was a big shock.’
The Como coach is only 39 years old and hung up his boots in 2023, going straight into management with the Italian club in Serie B.
In Calcio, there is a battle between so-called Giochisti and Risultatisti, those who want to focus on playing good football, and those who say the result is all that truly matters. He is firmly in the first camp.
Fabregas not just about the result
COMO, ITALY – MAY 02: SSC Como 1907 coach Cesc Fabregas looks on during the Serie A match between Como 1907 and SSC Napoli at Giuseppe Sinigaglia Stadium on May 02, 2026 in Como, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
“I coach the way that I feel. I love the game. If I coach only to get results, I will not do it. I don’t have the necessity to do it,” Fabregas told Telegraph Sport.
“I do it because of the passion and because I want to do it my way. You know, of course, you need to adapt, depending on the group of players that you have.
“But, at the end of the day, you have some beliefs. I could not coach long ball, second ball. Why? Because you need to believe in what you do. You can win in any way, as long as you convince the players and you convince everyone that this is the right way.
“But I have my beliefs. If you want to play long ball, second ball, I’m sorry I’m not your guy, because I don’t feel it. So I will not be able to transmit the fire.”
He is trying to adapt all that he learned over 20 years as a player and brings that to this new stage of his career, trying also to avoid the errors he witnessed in the past.
That came from a little black book he started when playing for Arsenal, updating throughout his time at various clubs.
COMO, ITALY – AUGUST 24: Como 1907 coach Cesc Fabregas looks on during the Serie A match between Como 1907 and SS Lazio at Giuseppe Sinigaglia Stadium on August 24, 2025 in Como, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
“I started the book when I was 22 or 23, before going to Barcelona, and then I just kept adding to it during my career,” continued Fabregas.
“I referred back to it at the beginning because everything was new. But now, with my experience, every time I’m more confident about what I do. If I’m unsure about something, I could sneak a look and pick a little bit of it, but not so often now.
“The biggest chapters are probably about Arsene, because everything was new, and Conte, because, for me, he was a big shock. Everything was different.”
Chelsea manager Antonio Conte (L) greets player Cesc Fabregas (R) at the end of the English Premier League soccer match Chelsea vs Swansea at Stamford Bridge, London, Britain, 25 February 2017. EPA/WILL OLIVER EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or ‘live’ services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications
Conte and Fabregas met at the weekend in a 0-0 Serie A draw between Como and Napoli, having worked together for two years at Chelsea.
“It was the first time someone was telling me where I need to pass the ball. The way he dealt with things, he was very, very tough in certain things. So he made me see a lot of new things and also he learned to trust me.”
The coach he still keeps in touch with the most is Wenger from the early days at Arsenal, who along with Thierry Henry and David Dien have been in the stands to cheer on Como.
“Arsene sends me messages after games, even when we lose or when we win after good performances. He gives me a lot of courage,” concluded Fabregas.
Cesc Fabregas explains why he is in no rush to leave Como, even if he’d like to work in the Premier League ‘in 12, 15 years,’ because he has control. ‘I take all the football decisions, I designed the gym.’
The tactician has taken Como from Serie B to the top flight, the Coppa Italia semi-final and now challenging for a Champions League qualifying place in the space of three years.
It has attracted so much attention that there were reports he had been approached by Chelsea and Arsenal, two of his former clubs as a player, but insists he is in no rush to leave the Stadio Sinigaglia.
Fabregas eager to see Como develop
COMO, ITALY – APRIL 12: Como 1907 coach Cesc Fabregas and FC Internazionale coach Cristian Chivu look on during the Serie A match between Como 1907 and FC Internazionale at Giuseppe Sinigaglia Stadium on April 12, 2026 in Como, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
“I’ve always been very, very clear about it. I felt it as a player, I feel it as a coach, as a fan. But [Jose] Mourinho told me one day when I was at Chelsea ‘I still have 30 years to work’. So I could be here for 10 years, and you can still go to the Premier League in 12, 15 years.
“Football is so unpredictable, it changes in one second. One day, you are the best. The day after, you are the worst. So let’s enjoy the moment. I like to enjoy the moment. It’s beautiful what we are living here. Let’s see what the future holds.”
Seeing the speed at which some clubs go through managers, he has even more reason to stick it out with Como, where he represents far more than just a coach.
When he joined as a player in 2022, the Spaniard also invested as a minority shareholder, and has been given the keys to the club by billionaire owners the Hartono family.
COMO, ITALY – MARCH 03: Como 1907 coach Cesc Fabregas issues instructions to his players Anastasios Douvikas and Martin Baturina during the Coppa Italia match between Como 1907 and FC Internazionale at Giuseppe Sinigaglia Stadium on March 03, 2026 in Como, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
“I take all the football decisions. The sporting director, he’s day-to-day with me and we see football the same way. The signings, we work with data, we have our scouting and stuff, but it needs to be something that I believe in. It needs to be a player that I’m convinced about.
“I’m so happy and lucky that we have a president that trusts me a lot and has given me the confidence to go and take all the football decisions. That, for me, is really important.”
Fabregas repeatedly said that he used to open the gates of the training ground at 6am, but goes into further detail of how much Como have built to follow his vision.
“The gym I designed with the architect. I designed the glass on the front. I learned it from Arsène [Wenger]. I remembered that the gym needs to be looking at the game on the pitches for the injured players.
“All the food comes here, it was an old building, and I did it the way that I feel is right. And all the pitches, everything. At the stadium, I said we need a bigger pitch because we are a team that wants the ball, we have possession. So I made the pitch bigger.
“In Italy, people were saying ‘no, no, why 65 metres? Make it 63 because that means you can defend better’. So it’s a bit the concept of you look at football in one way or another.”
MILAN, ITALY – APRIL 21: Nico Paz of Como 1907 talks to Cesc Fabregas, Head Coach of Como 1907 during the Coppa Italia Semi-Final match between FC Internazionale and Como at San Siro on April 21, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
Now that they are on the verge of qualifying for Europe, Fabregas can’t wait to see what happens next at Como.
“We started this journey, not on the ground floor, but at minus 10. So we’re ahead of schedule and we are in the early days. I feel that this club has so much potential, but this is what I was given. You know, this is the beauty of this project, starting from nothing to make one day a European club.”
“I’m enjoying what I’m doing. I’m in a beautiful place with amazing people who let me work and they trust me. Every day, I feel like I am at university because every day I need to make a crazy amount of decisions all over the club. And, for me, this is good because I’m learning faster than maybe doing it another way.”
NAPLES, ITALY – NOVEMBER 01: Cesc Fabregas Como 1907 head coach greets Antonio Conte SSC Napoli head coach before the Serie A match between SSC Napoli and Como 1907 at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona on November 01, 2025 in Naples, Italy. (Photo by Francesco Pecoraro/Getty Images)
Some had suggested Fabregas would make a good Italy coach, but this is another thing he is in absolutely no hurry to experience.
“If you ask me now ‘do you want to coach a national team?’ I will tell you ‘no’. Because I love coaching. I love being every day on the grass. I love being with the young players. I love the individual sessions. I love it all.”
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