19th May 2013: Chelsea end their campaign away to Everton and Rafa BenÃtez exits the Chelsea dugout for the last time, thus beginning a summer of speculation circulating around who would be brave enough to take the seat that 9 have taken since 2003. Roman Abramovich's takeover in 2003 heralded success through unlimited funds to players, good managers and some luck along the way. But, no matter how well a manager seems to do, a vacancy at Stamford Bridge has become commonplace (ask Roberto Di Matteo), in that time with the hotseat and Abramovich burning each of those 9 managers out and extinguishing the hope of keeping the job. Abramovich has become notorious for this ruthless habit and has incurred the wrath of the fans for some of his decisions, but he remains there, where many haven't. So, who would want to work under this hitman and try and forge a long-term run in the home dugout? We take a look at 10 candidates here.
Note: All win percentages mentioned are courtesy of statistics on their respective Wikipedia pages and are accurate of 2nd April 2013
10. David Moyes
At Number 10, we start in the Premier League with currently the third longest serving manager in the league David Moyes. For 11 years now, he has been at the helm of an Everton side that has been a mainstay in the Premier League and has got them challenging for European football almost every season. His coy signings have got people talking about him being a hot property on the managerial market, however he has never been given as much funds as he wants to bring in quality personnel that can allow the team to challenge for the Top 4 more regularly (only being able to reach the promised land of the Champions League once in 2005). Lack of funds has led him to consider his future at the Merseyside club and, as we all know, funds are in abundance at Chelsea. A win percentage of 42% at Everton over his tenure suggests he is very capable of managing at a higher club and successful buys in the transfer window such as Marouane Fellaini and Steven Pienaar show that he can spot talent effectively and make them wanted by other clubs. However, his frosty relationship with Bill Kenwright demanding more funds, could count against him at Chelsea and lead to a quick dismissal should he come. The reason that Moyes has remained despite these disputes, I feel, is that Kenwright listens to the fans and being an Evertonian himself, he understands the backlash from the fans, should the axe fall on the Scotsman. I don't think Abramovich considers this when he orchestrates the guillotine on manager's heads.