Julian Nagelsmann is no longer in the running to become Chelsea boss after pulling out of the race to replace Graham Potter.
Nagelsmann was among four leading candidates shortlisted by the Blues, along with former Manchester City defender Vincent Kompany, as they step up the search for their next permanent head coach following the sacking of Potter earlier this month.
Yet following multiple discussions with Stamford Bridge chiefs, the former Bayern Munich manager has withdrawn from talks and has therefore ruled himself out of contention for the job.
His decision is understood to be final, meaning Chelsea co-owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali will be forced to remove his name from their managerial shortlist.
Along with Nagelsmann, Boehly and Eghbali identified former Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino, promotion-winning Burnley boss Kompany and one other mystery candidate as potential options.
Luis Enrique also held face-to-face talks over the possibility of joining Chelsea, only for The Telegraph to reveal this week that he is no longer on their shortlist.
Nagelsmann emerged as one of the frontrunners to take the reins at Stamford Bridge just one month after being sacked by Bayern.
Despite winning the Bundesliga in his first season, the 35-year-old paid the price following reports of bust-ups with senior players and a run of five wins in nine matches which let Borussia Dortmund back into the title race.
Prior to his stint in Munich, Nagelsmann was named German football manager of the year in 2017 after guiding Hoffenheim to a fourth-place Bundesliga finish in his first season as a head coach.
He went one better and finished third the following year, before joining RB Leipzig in 2019 and reaching the Champions League semi-final in his debut campaign.
Pochettino has been out of work since being sacked by Paris Saint-Germain last summer, marking the end of a disappointing spell in charge of the French club.
After crashing out of the Champions League at the last-16 stage in his second season, the Argentine was dismissed by PSG last summer despite winning Ligue 1.
Unlike Nagelsmann and Pochettino, Kompany is riding a wave of success right now after hitting the ground running in his debut managerial campaign with Burnley.
The City legend has already sealed promotion to the Premier League after taking 92 points from a possible 126 this season, having masterminded a spectacular transformation of Burnley following their top-flight relegation in 2021-22.
Under his management, the Lancashire club have gone from a physical, direct team into a free-flowing attacking outfit who remain on course to break the 100-point barrier.
Kompany is therefore attracting interest from both Chelsea and Tottenham, who are also on the hunt for a new head coach after sacking Antonio Conte last month.
Both London clubs find themselves under interim management right now, with Conte’s No 2 Cristian Stellini in charge of Spurs and Frank Lampard returning to Chelsea as caretaker boss earlier this month.
Source: Dailymail
