How Chelsea could line up under Ancelotti with his return 12 years after axe

CARLO ANCELOTTI is being tipped for a shock return to Chelsea this summer.

The Blues are searching for a new permanent head coach after sacking Graham Potter following a whirlwind seven-month spell.

Club legend Frank Lampard has been put in charge of the side until the end of the season.

But, unless he wins the Champions League, the former Chelsea midfielder is expected to be replaced before the 2023/24 campaign gets underway.

The likes of Julian Nagelsmann and Luis Enrique have been mooted as possible candidates.

But Real Madrid boss Ancelotti is now being touted for the role - 12 years after he departed Stamford Bridge.

The Italian, 63, could leave the Spanish champions in the coming months as they sit 12 points behind Barcelona in LaLiga.

They do face Chelsea in the Champions League quarter-finals, with anything but a 15th European triumph set to seal Ancelotti's exit.

He has been linked with the vacant Brazil national team job.

However, Chelsea may look to entice him with a lucrative offer.

And Ancelotti could bring a couple of players back with him.

Marco Asensio and Dani Ceballos are both out of contract at the end of the season.

As they are set to depart Real, continuing with the four-time Champions League-winning manager could prove an attractive proposition.

Chelsea may also wish to make Atletico Madrid loanee Joao Felix's move a permanent one as they desperately search for a focal point to their attack.

Ancelotti won the double with the Blues in 2010, but left the following season after a trophyless campaign in which they finished second in the Premier League behind Manchester United.