Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich would hire Zinedine Zidane for ONE reason - Robert Pires

That is according to former Arsenal star and fellow countryman Robert Pires. Zidane is widely-fancied to replace under-fire Maurizio Sarri at Stamford Bridge after a tricky couple of months for the Italian and his Blues side.

Chelsea owner Abramovich has hired 10 different permanent first-team managers during his 16-year tenure at the helm.

And Pires thinks Zidane's accomplishments with Real Madrid could see him thrust well into the frame should the Russian tycoon look to replace Sarri in the coming months.

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"It’s a very strange situation with Chelsea and how they treat their managers," he told Bwin.

"Sarri is a very good manager and he performed very well with Napoli, but it’s hard to see him at the club next season.

"There appears to be a lot of player power at Chelsea that he is struggling to overcome like many have before him.

"I think Zidane would be a very good appointment at Chelsea.

"He would demand respect from the Chelsea players and control the dressing room as a result of everything he has achieved both on the pitch as a player and on the bench as a manager.

"He’s a winner and a warrior. He’s had great success in the Champions League which is attractive to the Chelsea owner.

"It would be very good news for the Premier League if Zidane moved to England."

Sarri looked like he was on the verge of leaving Stamford Bridge last month.

But the Italian now seems more relaxed over his immediate future in west London.

"I feel the same as before, but happier because the results are positive," he told Sky Sport Italia over the weekend.

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"When everyone talked about my dismissal, I was talking with the club to plan the team for next season, so I was always relaxed."

Chelsea take on Dynamo Kiev in the Europa League this Thursday.