Italy's World Cup winning coach Marcello Lippi may yet replace Jose Mourinho as Chelsea manager, according to a front-page report in yesterday's Italian sports daily Gazzetta Dello Sport.

According to the report, Lippi is scheduled to take over at Stamford Bridge next season with the former Chelsea player-manager Gianluca Vialli working alongside him as an assistant. In an interview with the The Irish Times two months ago, Lippi hinted that he might be tempted to return to football in the English Premiership.

Lippi has not coached since resigning immediately after Italy's World Cup triumph in Germany last summer. Speaking to this paper, however, Lippi suggested that he would be keen to get back into action for the 2007-2008 season, indicating that it was more likely he would return as manager-coach of a club rather than as a national team manager.

In the past Lippi has admitted that his lack of English could prove to be a handicap to working in the Premiership, so the appointment of Vialli as his assistant may be an attempt to resolve both linguistic and cultural problems. Vialli speaks excellent English and, as a former Chelsea player and former manager of both Chelsea and Watford, he has extensive knowledge of English football.

Gazzetta Dello Sport also claims that a forthcoming meeting between Mourinho and Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, will not see the Portuguese manager's contract extended but rather will concentrate on defining the terms of Mourinho's severance package.

"Gazzetta" also suggests that if Chelsea fail to agree terms with Lippi, the London club may then look for the services of either Carlo Ancelotti, currently coach to AC Milan, or Frank Rijkaard, Barcelona's coavh.