Roberto De Zerbi will not join Chelsea to stay at Brighton with neither parties interested in pursuing a potential deal.
The Italian has been linked with the vacant job at Stamford Bridge but it is understood he is committed to Brighton.
De Zerbi has impressed at Brighton since replacing Graham Potter last year and is focused on their bid to win the FA Cup and qualify for Europe.
Brighton face Manchester United in the semi-finals of the FA Cup later this month and are sixth in the Premier League, seven points behind fourth-placed Tottenham but with three games in hand on Spurs.
Speaking on Monday, De Zerbi expressed his sadness at Potter being sacked by Chelsea.
“I want to say thanks to Graham Potter,” he said. “I have a team with a very good attitude and mentality. I am very sorry. It is bad news for the coaches.”
Chelsea want to interview four or five candidates during a robust selection process for their new manager.
Julian Nagelsmann, Mauricio Pochettino, Ruben Amorim, Oliver Glasner and Luis Enrique are thought to be among five to seven names being considered, while Luciano Spalletti could come into contention.
Chelsea do not want to rush into a decision, but have begun sounding out representatives over the potential availability of their clients. No timescale has been put on the hunt for a permanent manager.
Bruno Saltor has been placed in charge on an interim basis and will lead the team against Liverpool on Tuesday.
Chelsea are said to be relaxed about the prospect of Bruno being in charge for next week’s Champions League quarter-final first leg against Real Madrid, despite the 42-year-old having only four years’ coaching experience.
Chelsea are keen to avoid the mistakes made last year, when they rushed into appointing Graham Potter following the sudden departure of Thomas Tuchel. Potter was, in hindsight, ill-suited to the Chelsea project and was sacked at the weekend, with the Blues languishing in 11th place in the Premier League.
Several candidates for the Chelsea job have already indicated whether they are interested in succeeding Potter. Nagelsmann is keen on joining Chelsea, but would prefer to wait and join in the summer, after being sacked by Bayern Munich last month.
Pochettino, who held talks with Chelsea last year before Potter was appointed, is open to an approach, despite his Tottenham connection. Ex-Spain boss Luis Enrique wants to work in the Premier League and is interested.
Fulham boss Marco Silva had been linked with job but has yet to receive any contact from Chelsea.
Chelsea also had exploratory talks with Sporting CP manager Amorim last year and continue to monitor his availability. Glasner won the Europa League with Eintracht Frankfurt last season and his achievements are admired, despite their Champions League defeat by Spalletti’s Napoli last month.
Napoli are on course to win the Italian title for the first time in 23 years, which would earn Spalletti legendary status, and he is unlikely to want to leave the club.
Chelsea co-owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali want the hunt for their next boss to be thorough. They have tasked sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart with leading the search.
