Soccer Central

Russian coach Guus Hiddink looks set to become the new manager of Chelsea, after Luiz Felipe Scolari was sacked by the club yesterday.

Hiddink has been in charge of Russia since 2006, but has previously managed such clubs as PSV Eindhoven, Real Betis, and even Real Madrid. Guus Hiddink has been a hugely successful club manager in the past, and a great success at international level also; Chelsea will now be hoping that the Dutch manager can come into the club and really be able to turn things around at Stamford Bridge over the course of the next few months.

Hiddink has said on the matter that “If it was any other club my answer would be a straight ‘no’, but Chelsea is different.”

The Russian Football Union is allowing Hiddink to do both jobs, with Hiddink expected to leave Chelsea at the end of the season in order to concentrate fully on his job as the manager of the Russian national team.

Hiddink is contracted to remain with Russia until the end of the 2010 World Cup, but is more than willing to help Chelsea out in the short term until the end of the 2008/09 season. Chelsea will no doubt be glad of Hiddink’s experience, and perhaps the Dutch manager will even be able to salvage the club’s season with a trophy or two. The Premier League is still there to be won, and Chelsea is still currently in the running in both the FA Cup and Champions League also. It’s certainly a long shot, but Guus Hiddink could yet win the treble with Chelsea this season.

If he does take charge at Chelsea (which looks almost certain), then Guus Hiddink will become the fourth Chelsea manager of the Abramovich era. Jose Mourinho has been the most successful manager of the Abramovich era so far, but Hiddink has the ability to boldly go where no Chelsea manager has ever gone before; Guus Hiddink has the potential to win the Champions League with Chelsea.

With the pressure off in the knowledge that he’ll be leaving the club in the summer, it’s possible that Guus Hiddink will have great success at Chelsea. He certainly has the potential to do well with the club, and Chelsea fans will no doubt be hoping that Hiddink can achieve great things over the coming weeks and months, and that a successful spell as manager can be capped with league or cup glory.

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