Can Guardiola replace Ancelotti?

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich could be looking to transplant some Barcelona DNA into his club as reports from the Daily Mail indicated he is getting ready to give Carlo Ancelotti the boot and replace him with Pep Guardiola, who is currently managing Barcelona. Arnesen, who holds the portfolio of Sporting Director at the club, has already been pushed out at the club, as Chelsea have announced that he will be standing down from his position at the end of this season. It was also reported that Abramovich is looking at Barcelona's ex-sporting director Txiki Begiristain as Arnesen's replacement. Begriristain, 46, is well-known in football circles as the key man at the Catalan side who decided to sign up Lionel Messi, who is now a key talisman for Guardiola's side. The Russian billionaire is looking for his club to copy Barcelona's youth development structure at La Masia, in an attempt to increase the quality of players at Stamford Bridge, without having to shell out the millions that Abramovich had previously spent on the club.

This is one of the key reasons for Arnesen's pending departure from the club, and although Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck insisted that Arnesen had requested that he leave 'to seek a new challenge', the Dane has been under pressure for more than a year after his expensive academy programme had failed to produce enough potential first-team players. Arnesen is understood to have approached the board last week about leaving at the end of the season. The Dane's removal also paves the way for the rise of Michael Emenalo, who, despite not possessing relevant UEFA badges, and whose last coaching position was a girls' team in the United States, is now seen by the playing squad as Abramovich's man who will keep tabs on the side. The squad are apparently behind Ancelotti, and apparently feel a sense of "them and us" against the ownership hierarchy.

It is significant that with Ancelotti's contract ending in 2012, the club has made no attempt to extend his contract, despite the Italian's success at the club. Although Ancelotti has said he expects to be in London next season, it was also reported that he is frustrated at the club and the playing squad provided for him. Serbian defender Branislav Ivanovic spoke out about the shock of losing Wilkins. "Ray was important for us and for Carlo also, because he was between us and Carlo,' said Ivanovic. 'He did a great job and Carlo was a little bit disappointed [that he left]", Ivanovic said. "Everyone was a little bit in shock, everyone was surprised because no-one expected this. We came in one day and heard from the media, from the club. After that, we had to stay focused and look forward." On speculation over Ancelotti's future, he added: "I cannot answer the question because at the moment Carlo is our manager. In his mind and our mind is the future with him. We can't be thinking about ifs and whens. I hope he is going to stay for a long, long time." However, with Abramovich clearly looking to clean house at Stamford Bridge, there will be no guarantees about anyone's future at the club, especially in light of the Russian's penchant for changing managers.