JULIAN NAGELSMANN has spoken for the first time since rejecting the chance to manage Chelsea.
The German manager, 35, was one of the frontrunners for the job at Stamford Bridge following the sacking of Graham Potter.
The Blues are on the hunt for their next permanent boss to arrive in the summer following Frank Lampard‘s stint as interim manager.
The club legend has lost all four of his games in charge of the club since his return, making the focus on who will replace him even more intense.
However, they were dealt a blow as the former Bayern Munich boss ruled himself out of the race.
When asked why talks collapsed with the Blues, he told Sky Sports DE: “To cancel something, you have to commit to something.”
Journalist Fabrizio Romano has claimed that the German had many rounds of talks with Chelsea.
But the move collapsed due to the timing, with Nagelsmann wanting to “plan for his future”.
Romano also suggested that the out-of-work manager and the club have “different views on crucial points”.
This means that the West London side will have to turn to their other targets for the managerial hunt.
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Former Tottenham manager Mauricio Pocchetino is likely the leading candidate as ex-Spain and Barcelona boss Luis Enrique was ruled out by the club.
The 51-year-old Argentine has been out of work since he was sacked by Paris Saint-Germain at the end of last season.
The ex-Southampton chief capped off his five-year stint at White Hart Lane by leading Spurs to the 2019 Champions League final, where they lost to Liverpool.
But he was sacked just months later following a poor start to the 2019-20 campaign before eventually taking over at PSG in January 2021, winning the Coupe de France and Ligue 1 prior to his departure.
Another candidate for the role is Burnley’s Vincent Kompany, while Napoli’s Luciano Spalletti and Sporting Lisbon’s Ruben Amorim are others believed to have been spoken to by Chelsea chiefs.
Meanwhile, club co-owner Todd Boehly is ready to introduce a new transfer policy to drag his side back towards the top of the table.
And it could see a radically different squad at Stamford Bridge next campaign.
