Chelsea have narrowed their shortlist for their next permanent manager to four names... but Julian Nagelsmann will NOT be taking over.
Nagelsmann had been one of the frontrunners alongside former Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino for the role. But the former Bayern Munich coach has withdrawn from the race to replace Graham Potter, sacked at the start of April, despite being interviewed.
Sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart are leading the search with support from co-owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali. That process is now finally progressing with a shortlist of four names now being drawn up by Winstanley and Stewart.
Burnley’s Vincent Kompany is the surprise name on the final shortlist, along with ex-Spurs chief Mauricio Pochettino, who held talks with the club earlier this week. A 'secret' fourth option has also made it to the next stage, with further discussions planned.
As yet there is no clear favourite. Chelsea are determined to take their time over the appointment but it's understood that Nagelsmann wanted to be installed immediately.
There is also an acceptance that the men they are chasing will also be of interest to other clubs looking for a new boss. Kompany has impressed during his time at Burnley, with the Belgian leading the Clarets to promotion back to the Premier League. He is also drawing admiring glances from Tottenham.
That would be a risk as he has not even managed in the top flight but the former Belgium star is already viewed in some quarters as a long term successor for Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.
HAVE YOUR SAY! Who should Chelsea appoint as their next manager? Comment below.
Pochettino meanwhile impressed during the first round of talks, with this being the third time he is linked with the Chelsea hotseat. Jobs at Real Madrid and PSG are also potentially available this summer.
Former Spain boss Luis Enrique was also an early candidate but the interest has cooled while Pochettino is likely to be keen on a return to the Premier League.
Chelsea have already been warned to speed up their process by former Arsenal star Paul Merson.
He warned the Blues that they could not afford to dither over the next appointment ahead of a huge summer transfer window.
"It don't matter who the manager is. They need to get the manager in now. They need to sort this out now. This is no disrespect to Frank, but they have got to go 'right who do we want, who do we get'," he told Sky Sports.
"You go in now, there's four, five, six games to go, you can tinker, who's about to be their next season, who's not. He knows he's only there for the short time anyway. Frank knows he was their for a short time, he was there for the Champions League games.
"Chelsea are in a bit of a problem at the moment. They need to get it sorted very quickly. They've been nowhere in the league in the last six years, they've been a cup team. They need to change it. They need to get a manager in because their next window is massive."
