Chelsea Reportedly Stepping Up Maurizio Sarri Pursuit Ahead of Clause Deadline

Chelsea have reportedly stepped up their pursuit of Maurizio Sarri as they look to find a replacement for current manager Antonio Conte. 

According to La Gazzetta dello Sport (h/t Football Italia), Sarri has an €8 million (£7 million) release clause in his Napoli contract that must be activated before May 31, and the Italian's agent, Alessandro Pellegrini, has been in contact with Chelsea intermediaries.

Due to the release clause deadline in Sarri's deal Chelsea will have to move quickly if they are to secure his services and the manager himself is preparing for the move by telling some of his staff to begin learning English, per Gazzetta's report (via Football Italia).

Conte, 48, still has a year remaining on his Chelsea contract but has looked set to exit Stamford Bridge this summer for some time now, per Jason Burt in the Telegraph.

After leading the Blues to the 2016-17 Premier League title in his debut season in charge, he has overseen a decline this season, and Chelsea are now in serious danger of missing out on UEFA Champions League football next term.

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They are fifth in the Premier League on 66 points with three games remaining of the campaign. They won the league last season with 93 points.

Sarri, meanwhile, has been impressive in his three seasons at Napoli, developing one of the most exciting sides in Europe.

However, the Partenopei look set to fail, once again, in their bid to beat Juventus to the Serie A title, their 3-0 defeat to Fiorentina on Sunday having seen them slip four points back from the Old Lady with three matches remaining.

Sarri, 59, may feel he has taken Napoli as far as he can, and it would be no surprise were he attracted by the new opportunity and greater resources on offer at Chelsea.

There have also been reports that Borussia Dortmund are interested in hiring him, per CalcioNapoli (via Goal's Ronan Murphy):

But, if Sarri is to depart the Stadio San Paolo this summer, Chelsea are looking the more likely destination.