Ipswich manager Kieran McKenna leads Brighton bid as Bayern Munich eyes Roberto De Zerbi after shock announcement

Ipswich Town manager Kieran McKenna is one of the leading contenders to replace Roberto De Zerbi at Brighton, according to talkSPORT.

The Seagulls announced on the eve of the final day of the Premier League season that their match against Manchester United would be De Zerbi’s last in the hot seat.

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After two years in charge of the south coast club, Brighton and the Italian coach mutually agreed to terminate his contract, which was due to run until 2026.

The move comes amid intense speculation over De Zerbi’s future, with a number of European giants keen to have him as their next boss.

AC Milan, where De Zerbi began his professional playing career, is one of the teams interested in bringing the 44-year-old back to his native country.

But talkSPORT understands Bayern Munich are also keen to offer De Zerbi an immediate return to management, as they look to replace Thomas Tuchel at the helm after finishing third in the Bundesliga.

For Brighton, it means he is back to the drawing board after seeing another top manager have his head turned by other clubs.

Owner Tony Bloom and CEO Paul Barber will have their work cut out for them in finding their next manager who will follow in the footsteps of De Zerbi and Graham Potter, having punched well above their weight in the top flight in recent seasons.

According to talkSPORT sources, McKenna has become the club’s priority after guiding Ipswich to back-to-back promotions from League One to the Premier League.

It is also understood the 38-year-old is keen to take over at the Amex Stadium after a successful two-and-a-half year spell in charge of Ipswich – his first managerial role.

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While the news of De Zerbi’s departure came as a huge surprise on the eve of the final day of the campaign, it appears Brighton already have a plan to replace the boss, with Barber telling talkSPORT in November that the club was “prepared ” in the event that the boss is replaced. Italian leaving his post.

“Good players and good staff will always be looked at by competitors, and we are prepared for that, we are realistic about it and we try to plan for those eventualities,” Barber told talkSPORT football correspondent Ben Jacobs during of the Soccerex 2023 event. In Miami.

“The biggest problem with our model is that the more successful we are, the more vulnerable we become, because people look at what we do, how we do it, the people who do it for us, and they want them.

“But I see this as an important complement to the progress we are making and it is my responsibility to ensure we have succession plans in place to manage and overcome these bumps in the road.”

“Ultimately every football club will lose players and staff at some point, we just have to make sure we are ready and prepared for that when it happens to us.”

Asked if Brighton already had a replacement in mind in case a big club called up De Zerbi, Barber replied: “Absolutely.

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“This is an integral part of continually reviewing our club’s top 20 or 25 positions and identifying those who are likely to be taken by someone else or who simply want a lifestyle change and making sure we know if that happens, who would come in and replace them.

“It could be an internal or external appointment, but the most important thing is that we have an idea of ​​who it would be.

“There’s nothing worse than suddenly facing change and then having a gap because you didn’t do your homework to figure out who would replace that person. Preparation is essential.