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Chelsea owners BlueCo have reportedly agreed to bend to a key Xabi Alonso demand to land him as their new manager as the move is \u2018expected to accelerate\u2019 after the FA Cup final.<\/p>\n
Calum McFarlane will lead the Blues out at Wembley against Manchester City on Saturday in a game which could save, or at least put a gloss on, their season.<\/p>\n
BlueCo have sacked both Enzo Maresca and Liam Rosenior this season and Alonso is now being lined up to take over at Stamford Bridge. He\u2019s the frontrunner over Bournemouth\u2019s Andoni Iraola, Fulham\u2019s Marco Silva, Crystal Palace\u2019s Oliver Glasner and the former Flamengo manager Filipe Luis.<\/p>\n
READ MORE: Ten demands Xabi Alonso should make to BlueCo to accept Chelsea job<\/strong><\/p>\n According to The Guardian<\/em><\/strong>the Chelsea players \u2013 many of whom were wholly unconvinced by Rosenior and did their level best to force his dismissal from the club \u2013 \u2018believe Alonso is the ideal candidate to get the team back on track track\u2019.<\/p>\n Alonso was sacked by Real Madrid in January, but the Bernabeu fallout since<\/strong> has exposed just how difficult a job that is, and the reputation he built through winning the Bundesliga title with Bayer Leverkusen remains very much in tact.<\/p>\n The report claims Chelsea have \u2018traced Alonso\u2019s progress since the beginning of his managerial career\u2019 and with \u2018talks with the Spaniard\u2019s camp moving in the right direction\u2019 it\u2019s claimed that \u2018the situation is expected to accelerate\u2019 following the FA Cup final.<\/p>\n The high turnover of managers at Stamford Bridge \u2018has not put Alonso off joining\u2019 but he \u2018wants assurances over certain elements\u2019; specifically \u2018a say over signings\u2019.<\/p>\n And in quite the U-turn from BlueCo, who have previously operated with the coach coaching and co-sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Steward making recruitment decisions, \u2018indications are that Chelsea intend to give him what he wants\u2019.<\/p>\n \u2018There is a recognition that someone of Alonso\u2019s stature must be listened to when it comes to signings\u2019 and that \u2018there would be zero desire on Chelsea\u2019s part to impose players on him\u2019.<\/p>\n After the players downed tools under Rosenior they want a manager who \u2018can command the respect of the dressing room and keep strong egos in line\u2019; Alonso is keen to \u2018learn lessons from his time at Real Madrid\u2019, when he didn\u2019t always manage that.<\/p>\n The club bosses also believe that \u2018Alonso\u2019s standing would be a plus when Chelsea try to convince players to join\u2019 and the report concludes that \u2018there is a growing sense within the industry that a deal will be agreed\u2019.<\/p>\n <\/div>\nBending to a key Alonso demand<\/h2>\n