Paul Merson urges Arsenal to move for Antonio Conte if he leaves Chelsea

By Daniel Lewis, Senior Reporter | 09 February 2018

Paul Merson believes that former club Arsenal should prioritise bringing Antonio Conte to the club if he is sacked by Premier League rivals Chelsea.

Paul Merson has insisted that Antonio Conte would be an ideal replacement for Arsene Wenger at Arsenal should he leave Chelsea.

Conte's future at Stamford Bridge beyond the end of the current campaign looks bleak, having clashed with his superiors over transfer business and seen his side struggle for form.

Defending champions Chelsea are just a point above Tottenham Hotspur in the race for a top-four finish and recently exited the EFL Cup at the hands of Arsenal, reportedly leaving the Italian on the brink of being sacked.

Should the Blues wield the axe, former Gunners midfielder Merson believes that Conte should be at the top of the list to succeed Wenger, who has himself come under fire numerous times in recent seasons.

"The day Conte leaves Chelsea, if I was Arsenal, I'd be straight on the phone," he told Sky Sports News. "Managers like Conte don't come along too often. Arsenal need someone that is going to go in there and upset people. Conte upsets people. He wants you to play a certain way and he'll make you rock solid at the back.

"As soon as Arsenal get rock solid at the back, they'll be a force. I think Arsenal would say: 'we'd have you next season'. I think they'd be mad if they didn't. I think it ticks all the boxes. Arsenal can't keep missing all these managers. You can't tell me Pep Guardiola wouldn't want to have managed Arsenal?

"If he had that opportunity, he'd have gone to Arsenal in my opinion. Jurgen Klopp, Jose Mourinho, they all went to Arsenal's rivals because Wenger was sat there in the manager's seat instead of saying the time was right to leave. There are other top managers like Massimiliano Allegri at Juventus, but he might come in and it would take him a year to get used to the Premier League - like it did with Klopp."

Napoli boss Maurizio Sarri is also rumoured to be in the frame to take over from long-serving boss Wenger when he eventually calls it a day in North London.