Chelsea are scheduled to hold talks with Italy coach Antonio Conte over a deal to become the Blues' new manager in the coming days, Goal understands.
The Premier League champions have been looking for a permanent replacement for Jose
Mourinho since his sacking in December, with Guus Hiddink having taken charge on an interim basis until the end of the season.
Chelsea technical director Michael Emenalo was in attendance at the Juventus Stadium as the Serie A champions took on Bayern Munich ahead of talks with Conte's representatives on Thursday.
Conte - who was also in Turin to take in the Champions League last-16 clash on Tuesday - is certain to leave his role as manager of the Azzurri following their Euro 2016 campaign this summer, and Goal understands he first met with the Chelsea hierarchy in January.
He is keen to move back into club management having led Juve to to three straight Serie A titles and has been learning English in a bid to prepare himself for a Premier League move.
Conte has emerged as the front-runner for the vacant job in west London in recent weeks after rivals Diego Simeone and Massimiliano Allegri were unable to be tempted to join the 2012 Champions League winners.
Simeone will remain with Atletico Madrid while Allegri is set to agree a new deal with Juventus having recently led them to a club-record 15 straight Serie A victories.
Should talks be successful, Conte will be tasked with turning around Chelsea's fortunes following a nightmare defence of their league title which has seen them slide to 12th after 26 matches, with Hiddink admitting that his successor faces a difficult job in returning the club to the European elite.
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