Chelsea may not be best fit for Diego Simeone, says Terry Gibson
Thursday 24 December 2015 09:52, UK
Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone may not be the best fit for Chelsea next summer, says Terry Gibson.
Guus Hiddink was appointed interim manager following the dismissal of Jose Mourinho, and while Gibson believes Chelsea should pursue Simeone as their No 1 target, he would be surprised if the Atletico Madrid manager left for Stamford Bridge.
Speaking on the La Liga Weekly Podcast, the Sky Sports Spanish football expert said the Atleti boss would have to think carefully about leaving the Vicente Calderon, where he is worshipped by the club's fans.
Simeone guided Atletico to the league title in 2013/14 and enjoys control over several facets of the club, including transfers, and Gibson is sceptical that would be the case at Chelsea.
"He is slightly old fashioned in the sense he's in power, he is Atletico Madrid," Gibson said.
"When you look at it in terms of buying and selling players, they have so much faith in him. It would be hard for him to replicate that in any other job that he goes to. So I think that's the big dilemma.
"If I was Chelsea, yes, he would be No 1 on my list, but if I was Simeone I would take a good, long look at it. We know his affiliations to the club, during a successful period too, and I would be surprised if he left.
"He has nothing to complain about at Atletico Madrid, the environment he works in is perfect for him. He has no complaints in terms of investing money in new signings, they've not let him down there and I believe that will continue.
"We made the points about players that he bought that he didn't like and then moved out on loan quickly. There's been players he has bought and sold for a profit as well... it's swings and roundabouts. He won't have that power at Chelsea.
"Look at all Mourinho has done at Chelsea, and he never had that power second time around. He clearly wanted players in the summer, and didn't get the players he wanted."
Hiddink watched from the stands as Chelsea started the post-Mourinho era with 3-1 victory over Sunderland at Stamford Bridge, but the Dutchman is only under contract until the end of the season. Simeone has been at Atletico for four years and if Chelsea did come calling, Gibson believes he would be better off staying put.
"For Simeone, I wouldn't go as far as to say it would be a mistake to leave Atletico for Chelsea, my personal opinion is he's better served where he knows where the land lies, where he's in charge, and he's got that power," Gibson said.
"Atletico is his seventh job, he was a much-travelled manager until he found the perfect fit. It's worked out well for him, and I don't see too many reasons why he'd leave."
