Antonio Conte's time at Chelsea is surely coming to an end.

The Italian coach took charge at Stamford Bridge in 2016 but things have turned sour in his second season at the club.

Conte won the Premier League in his debut season in England - but the Blues currently linger in fifth and are set to miss out on Champions League football next season.

Chelsea face Southampton in the FA Cup semi-final this weekend but Cesar Azpilicueta believes winning the FA Cup won't be enough to save their season.

"The FA Cup is a massive trophy with a lot of history but it's not enough for us," the 28-year-old Spanish defender told BBC.

"We will try to win it but the cup will not save our season."

There aren't many Chelsea fans that would disagree.

Drastic change in manager hunt

Conte has a year left on his deal in west London but the club are expected to relieve him of his duties ahead of the 2018/19 season.

They are being linked with a number of big-name managers - including Napoli's Maurizzo Sarri - but they may yet go in a completely different direction.

According to The Telegraph, some close allies of Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich are urging him to consider finding the 'next big thing', rather than a proven winner.

Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino is Chelsea's ideal choice - but the club harbour little hope of prizing him away from their rivals.

However, Chelsea's admiration of the Tottenham manager has led them to try and 'identify the most promising coaches who have the potential to become the very best', as per The Telegraph.

Roma’s Eusebio Di Francesco, Hoffenheim’s Julian Nagelsmann and even Huddersfield Town’s David Wagner are the three men reportedly under consideration.

Chelsea are unlikely to bring in a manager from Huddersfield but The Telegraph claim 'there is a feeling they need to take a new route to the top and one way could be to appoint a fresh, dynamic coach who is committed to modern, attractive football and is willing to promote young players.'

They've tried it before

Chelsea did appoint a young, forward-thinking manager in 2011 - but it went horribly wrong and Andre Villas-Boas was sacked eight months after joining from Porto.

The 40-year-old Portuguese coach - who was replaced by Roberto Di Matteo - was last seen managing Shanghai SIPG in the Chinese Super League.

"There were some players who didn't want to work hard for Villas-Boas," Ashley Cole told ESPN.

"But as soon as [Roberto] Di Matteo arrived, that all changed."

Will Abramovich be willing to take a chance once again? Let us know what you think by leaving a comment below.