Scolari is out at Chelsea, and Hiddink is in, at least for the remainder of the season. Roman Abramovich used his influence with Russian Football to persuade them to let Hiddink serve as coach of both Chelsea and Russia on a temporary basis. Hiddink insists that at season's end, he's back to Russia full time to lead their World Cup qualifying campaign. So where does that leave the once mighty Blues?

It seems a long time since the glory of the Jose Mourinho era at Stamford Bridge. At the end of the 2006-07 season, Chelsea were basking in the glow of six titles in three years under the special one's managerial reign. Two Premier League Titles, two League Cups, an FA Cup, and the Community Shield. Not sure the Community Shield counts as a major title, but Jose certainly counted it.

Now, less than two years later, the club is on their third post-Mourinho manager. Avram Grant took over last season after Jose's sudden departure (still not sure if he quit or was forced out), and guided the club to three runners-up finishes: second in the league, and losers in the League Cup and Champions League finals. In fact, Grant was a John Terry slip away from being hailed as a European Champion. But Captain Terry spot kick sailed wide and United went on the lift the cup.

Second place was not good enough for Abramovich, so Grant's understated style was replaced with the larger than life character that is Luiz Filipe Scolari. Or perhaps I should say "was" Luiz Filipe Scolari. After scintillating performances to start the season, Chelsea looked like they had finally added entertaining, stylish football to their repertoire. The results and the flash were on display. But then a funny thing happened on the way to the title. Every time Liverpool slipped up and were held to a draw or a win, Chelsea responded in kind, unable to pick up vital wins to catch the Reds at the top of the table. And then Man United went on a sensational surge, including a record run of clean sheets (that's shutouts to those of us in America).

Suddenly, Chelsea found themselves in fourth place, behind the enigmatic Liverpool, the suddenly invincible United, and the upstart Aston Villa. If second place wasn't good enough for Grant, fourth place with Scolari could not be tolerated. So the former World Cup winning coach was shown the door. John Terry defended Scolari, claiming that one or two other players were also behind him. Only one or two? Not the most glowing endorsement. Likewise, Scolari claimed that Chelsea did not have any player who could single-handedly make a difference in a game. Not exactly an amicable split. I'm sure Lampard or Cole or Drogba might disagree.

So where did it all go wrong with Chelsea? Admittedly, most clubs would not consider fourth in the Premier League as "going wrong," but such is the cruel reality of high expectations. Some have claimed the club is aging, with Lampard, Drogba, Carvalho, and others the wrong side of 30. But perhaps a bigger problem is the lack of stability in the manager's role.

If you look at the history of the Premier League, Manchester United and Arsenal are clearly the most successful. And it's no coincidence that Sir Alex and Arsene Wenger are the two longest serving managers in the league. Both managers had spells of two or three years without winning the league, but both kept their jobs and bounced back with titles. Besides those two clubs and Chelsea, the next most successful club over the past five years has been Liverpool. No Premier League title, but impressive cup wins, and a title challenge this season - all under the management of Rafa Benitez. He's had his critics to be sure, but he has been given time to build the squad and demonstrate what he can do over multiple seasons. Grant and Scolari were not afforded that time.

Already this season, eight Premier League managers are no longer with the clubs they started the season with: Scolari, Ramos, Keane, Adams, Ince, Curbishley, Keegan, and Redknapp. More often than not, a managerial carousel results in a downward spiral rather than immediate success. But the financial penalty for relegation had made owners increasingly impatient for instant gratification.

Which brings me to my second explanation for Chelsea's current predicament. I call it the Real Madrid syndrome: buying star players for inflated salaries at the expense of squad unity and role players. After Chelsea won their second straight Premier League title, the Blues looked like an unbeatable squad. The only problem, no Champions League title. Rather than letting the same, impressive group of players give it another go the following year, with another year of experience playing together, Abramovich paid the big bucks to sign Andriy Shevchenko and Michael Ballack. Eidur Gudjohnsen and Damien Duff left the club, with Arjen Robben to follow a year later.

Shevchenko was a major bust, and eventually left the club. Ballack has had his moments, but they have been few and far between. This season, he had been arguably Chelsea's worst player, giving the ball away cheaply and basically getting in the way of his teammates.

In the end, I'm afraid I'm not unhappy to see Scolari leave Chelsea. I found many of his decisions baffling, particularly continuing to play Ballack and Malouda. I know Cole and Essien are injured, but how many sub-par performances does it take to convince Scolari? In a supreme irony, it was reported that Ballack claimed Scolari was Chelsea's "weakest link." If that is true, I maintain that the reason Scolari was the weakest link was because he continued to name Ballack in the starting eleven. I think that might make Ballack the weakest link, especially now that Scolari is gone.

Good luck to Guus Hiddink, but if he really is the manager for just a few months, then the managerial merry-go-round will continue at Stamford Bridge. Hiddink insists Chelsea have not given up on the Premier League title. But United are 7 points ahead with a game in hand. Chelsea may be better off focusing on the Champions League (game coming up against former Blues boss Ranieri) and the FA Cup (game coming up against former Blues reserve team coach), with an eye on holding off Arsenal (or Aston Villa) for fourth place.