The 36-year-old Vivell previously worked for RB Leipzig in his home country of Germany, where he was in charge of hiring and scouting for all age groups. Petr Cech left his position in the summer, and he was the ideal candidate to take over under chairman Todd Boehly.
Vivell previously worked as the head of scouting and recruitment at Leipzig’s sister club, Red Bull Salzburg, where he oversaw the signings of Erling Haaland and Karim Adeyemi.
Chelsea’s owner placed priority and trust in himself when he was able to bring on the newly appointed sporting director, and he stated that he was very happy after an official contract was signed with Vivell in December 2022.
“We are delighted that Christopher is taking up this important leadership role at the club. His work in Germany and Austria speaks for itself. We are confident he will continue on his impressive trajectory here at Chelsea,” Boehly revealed.
The Chelsea board, along with their newly appointed sporting director, Christopher Vivell, are said to have held a crisis meeting with Graham Potter and his staff to discuss the club’s recent poor form this season.
The London club has had a miserable season; currently tenth in the Premier League, the team is having one of its worst campaigns in recent memory.
Graham Potter, an English manager who replaced Thomas Tuchel last September, did not perform well despite receiving a sizable financial boost from American owner Todd Boehly.
The club has spent over £600 million in the last two transfer windows, but it still appears that it is insufficient. What seemed to be taken out of context was the club’s recent loss to bottom-of-the-table Southampton, which appears to be the potential tipping point for the English manager, as a large portion of the fanbase has turned against him.
The owners have previously openly supported the manager, but after recent poor results and performances, they may be forced to let him go.
The Evening Standard reported that the club called a last-minute meeting with the manager and staff to go over the “strategy” going forward. Christopher Vivell, the newly appointed technical director, was present.
