Pep Guardiola touted as Jose Mourinho replacement?

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich is reportedly to be encouraged to bring Pep Guardiola to Stamford Bridge to replace Jose Mourinho if the Portuguese manager is unable to turn the club's fortunes around.

The Blues lost 2-1 to London rivals West Ham United on Saturday to leave them 15th in the Premier League table with just three wins and five defeats from the opening 10 games of the defence of their title.

According to The Telegraph, intermediaries are attempting to convince Guardiola to take over the reigns at the English champions when his Bayern Munich contract expires at the end of the current season.

The paper also claims that Abramovich failed to convince the former Barcelona manager to come to the club in 2013, but that Guardiola is now keen to try his hand in the Premier League.

Despite Chelsea players insisting that they are still fully behind Mourinho, go-betweens are thought to be working without a directive from Abramovich or the club to sound the Bayern manager out about his interest in the job.

The Blues face a trip to Stoke City in the League Cup on Tuesday before hosting Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool next weekend.