Really? Rafa Benitez could take Chelsea role if AVB suffers Champions League KO

With Andre Villas-Boas facing the biggest clash of his Chelsea managerial tonight in the Champions League tonight, he can't have been too happy to see the latest name linked with his job.

The under-fire Blues boss has insisted time and time again that he has the backing of Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, despite the fact that the club face the possibility of missing out on a Champions League place next season for the first time since the Russian billionaire's arrival.

Now according to the Daily Mail, the latest manager linked to the Chelsea role is former Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez, who famously led the Reds to a Champions League trophy in 2005.

Though the 51-year-old Spaniard's standing dropped significantly following a brief unsuccessful stint at Inter Milan as the successor to Jose Mourinho, the troubled Serie A club have since appointed three different managers in the wake of Benitez (with current boss Claudio Ranieri already on the ropes), which somewhat lessens the extent of his failure at the club.

According to the Daily Mail, Benitez is open-minded about the position and is particularly interested in managing a Premier League club as his next challenge in management. Another likely candidate to replace Villas-Boas was former temporary Chelsea boss Guus Hiddink, though the Dutchman joined Russian megabucks side Anzhi late last week.

"Speculation is normal given the cultural past of this club but there’s a different perspective now," a defiant Andre Villas-Boas told reporters yesterday ahead of tonight's crucial away tie against Napoli.

"There’s a clear indication that there’s a change in the way we approach the projects for the future. We have great belief in what we will do next year. That doesn’t take away any responsibility for what’s happening now.

"We can do well in the Champions League and the FA Cup. But we had a three-year project to change not only the team, but the culture and structure of the club."