Arsene Wenger has announced that he will be leaving Arsenal at the end of the season.
Arsenal are struggling to qualify for next season’s Champions League with victory in the Europa League their only realistic route back into Europe’s premier club competition.
But who could possibly replace him? Thomas Tuchel, Thierry Henry and Max Allegri are among the names who have been linked with the job by bookmakers.
Here are five candidates whose management style could change the state of decay at Arsenal.
Carlo Ancelotti
Ancelotti has a wealth of experience with proven man-management skills who is unlikely to make the same mistake he made at Bayern, where he placed too much trust in established names.
Those apprehensive of Ancelotti’s appointment point to fears he is a short-term manager whose appointment would herald a new era of frequent change, conforming with the trend at the other top six clubs in the Premier League.
But the chance of taking on a bigger project of turning Arsenal back into Premier League title contenders would certainly appeal, and he would need no time to adapt to life back in London.
Brendan Rodgers (Celtic)
Rodgers has restored his reputation in just under two years at Celtic with the Glasgow giants on the brink of sweeping a treble of domestic trophies under the Northern Irishman for a second consecutive season.
The 45-year-old’s three-and-a-half year spell at Liverpool ended on a sour note in October 2015 but he came as close as anyone to ending their 28-year wait for a Premier League title in 2013-14.
Celtic’s major shareholder Dermot Desmond said on Friday he would not stand in Rodgers’ way.
“I don’t think you can put handcuffs on anybody if they want to go to a club as good as Arsenal,” he said. “It will be Brendan’s decision and Brendan’s decision only.”
Joachim Low
A World Cup winner, Loew has resisted the temptation to swap international football for the rigours of day-to-day club management and is under contract with the German federation until 2020.
Despite being one of the favourites for the job with the bookies, Loew’s chances are harmed by the fact he will lead Germany at the World Cup this summer.
Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis conceded the club are likely to favour a quick appointment with an early end to the transfer window in August leaving just three weeks between the World Cup final in Moscow on July 15 and the closing of the window for Premier League clubs on August 9.
Luis Enrique
Luis Enrique enjoyed a successful spell as Barcelona coach
A treble winner in his first season in charge of Barcelona in 2014-15, Enrique has enjoyed a season off after three gruelling campaigns at the Camp Nou.
Those three seasons delivered two league titles and three Copa del Rey wins on top of the Champions League in 2015.
Enrique is also interested in a move to the Premier League and would fit Gazidis’s claim that Arsenal want a successor to follow Wenger’s attacking style of play.
Leonardo Jardim
Jardim impressed as he guided Monaco to the Champions League semi-finals last season, and the Arsenal hierarchy have been keeping an eye on his situation ever since he masterminded the side’s win over the Gunners in the first knockout phase two years earlier.
Monaco won the Ligue 1 title under his stewardship last term, but the summer exodus has left them miles off the pace in competing with PSG this time around.
With the side holding onto second place, Jardim could be tempted to move on and his exciting brand of football would certainly get dissenting Arsenal fans out of their seats.
The Portuguese coach has a reputation for nurturing young talent, but given a bigger budget at Arsenal, he would be able to combine the best products from the club’s youth academy with ready-made stars.
Patrick Vieira
The inspirational captain of Arsenal’s ‘Invincibles’ that went an entire league season unbeaten in 2003-04, Vieira is a symbol of the glory years under Wenger.
Vieira won three league titles and three FA Cups during his playing days at Arsenal but has taken his first steps in management with another of his former clubs, Manchester City.
The Frenchman took charge of City’s elite development squad for 18 months before joining New York City, part of a network of clubs around the world owned by the City Football Group.
He led NYCFC to the MLS playoffs in each of his two full seasons in charge but lost out in the Eastern Conference semi-finals on both occasions.
While popular with the fans, Vieira’s lack of top-level managerial experience would pose a huge risk in Arsenal’s attempts to re-establish themselves as a Premier League contender.