The Political Economy of Football V2

Kieran Maguire of the Price of Football has noted that if the Conte severance figure as reported in the media are correct then it brings total management change costs at Chelsea to £80.6 million since Abramovich bought the club. Of course, the Chelsea way is to have a rapid turnover of managers. Whether less frequent changes would have brought better outcomes is a matter for speculation. Chelsea had hoped to avoid paying out £9.5m on the 12 months left on his contract. For his part, Conte is far from happy and is considering legal action: Angry coach

Chelsea hope that a big club such as Paris Saint-Germain will come in for Antonio Conte this summer. This would save them a significant compensation bill. Under the severance terms of his two year contract Conte is entitled to be paid for up to another year until he gets another job, or the difference between his old and new salary if he returns to work immediately. PSG would be one of the few clubs able to match Conte's salary of £9 million and he is on their shortlist to replace Unai Emery, who is expected to be sacked at the end of the season. Chelsea would also be obliged to pay off the nine Italians on the back room staff if they sack Conte.