Conte leads the list of candidates to replace Mourinho if he is fired.

Italy head coach Antonio Conte, who used to manage Juventus, has left open the possibility of moving to work in the Premier League after the end of the Euro 2016 campaign.

Chelsea are having a disastrous run in the Premier League. A 1-2 defeat at Leicester City in round 16 yesterday left the defending champions in 16th place with only 15 points, just one point above the relegation zone and 14 points behind the bottom four.

Mourinho still retains the support of owner Roman Abramovich, but once the Russian billionaire runs out of patience, the hot seat at Chelsea will await the race of branded candidates.

Mourinho has not lost the support of Abraovich, but time is running out and if he does not turn things around soon, he may have to leave. Photo: AP.

Antonio Conte is now considered by the British media as a leading candidate. The 46-year-old coach led Juventus to three consecutive Serie A titles before becoming head coach of the Italian national team.

He is unlikely to leave his job in the Azzurri before the end of Euro 2016 next summer. However, there are already some admirers of Conte's talent within the Chelsea board. After the European Championship finals, he will be one of only a handful of talented, unattached managers Chelsea can consider. The club has not sacked Mourinho so far, partly because there is no replacement candidate who meets both the criteria of prestige and freedom.

Recently, Conte also revealed the possibility of changing his working environment after ending his contract with the Italian national team, and the next destination could be the English Premier League.

Conte is looking for a new challenge and experience after his success with Juventus and leading Italy to the Euro 2016 finals.

Pep Guardiola could also be a strong candidate to take over as Chelsea manager if he tells Bayern Munich bosses this month that he will leave when his current contract expires in June 2016. However, Manchester City have emerged as a club keen to lure the Spaniard to England. Chelsea could have a slight advantage as Pep has previously revealed he wants to live in London.

Carlo Ancelotti, who led Chelsea to a Premier League and FA Cup double in 2009-10, recently said he did not want to return to management this season after being sacked by Real Madrid at the end of last season. But he has said he is open to new opportunities from the summer of 2016.

According to VNE