Chelsea Appoints Benitez

As speculated, Rafa Benitez has been appointed as Chelsea's interim manager until the end of the season following Roberto Di Matteo's dismissal.

In a statement on the club's official website, Chelsea said Benitez will manage the Blues until the end of the current season.

"The owner and the Board believe that in Benitez we have a manager with significant experience at the highest level of football, who can come in and immediately help deliver our objectives," Chelsea said.

The Blues added that Benitez is set to meet the players at the training ground in Cobham tomorrow.


"The two-time UEFA Manager of the Year comes with outstanding pedigree. He began his managerial career in his homeland, most notably at Valencia where he built a reputation as one of Europe's top coaches by winning the Spanish League twice and the UEFA Cup. He then spent six years at Liverpool and led them to their fifth European Cup and an FA Cup," the club said.

Benitez' appointment sees the Spaniard reuniting with striker Fernando Torres who has struggled to live up to his GBP50 million transfer fee Chelsea paid Liverpool for him in January 2011.

As I had noted in yesterday's posting, Benitez initially considered by Chelsea in March this year when Andre Villas Boas was sacked but a deal wasn't reached at the time as the Blues wanted an interim manager while the Spaniard was looking for a longer-term contract.


I guess being out of a job for nearly two years changed his mind this time around. I will be posting more on this soon. It also makes you wonder the role Torres played in bringing Benitez to Stamford Bridge.