Why has Julian Nagelsmann “withdrawn” from the race to manage Premier League club Chelsea?

First it was Luis Enrique and now it’s Julian Nagelsmann. Two days after British newspaper The Telegraph revealed that the Spaniard was no longer in contention to become the new manager of Premier League club Chelsea, Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano has reported that “the German coach is said to be no longer available after multiple round[s] of talks”. Luis Enrique and Nagelsmann had been considered by many as two of the favourites to replace Graham Potter at Stamford Bridge.

Reservations from the Blues and Nagelsmann

According to The Telegraph, it was the Blues who ‘cut’ the ex-Barcelona coach from their manager shortlist but it appears from various reports in the British press that both Nagelsmann and Chelsea had their reservations over linking up. UK broadcaster Sky Sports claim that the German “senses that the varied shortlist reflected a lack of clarity over the decision they want to take”, while the London outfit had “concerns over his age and lack of experience of English football” and that he was “not prepared to jostle for the job with other candidates.

“Julian Nagelsmann has now withdrawn from the race to become the new Chelsea head coach — it looks like it’s his final decision”, added Romano.

Who is in contention to manage Chelsea?

Although the club have insisted that there is no out-and-out favourite for the position, Nagelsmann, along with Mauricio Pochettino, are two of the names the Londoners had some level of interest in.

Both the recently-sacked Bayern Munich coach and the Argentinian had been named by The Athletic as one of four possible contenders for the position, with former Manchester City defender Vincent Kompany, who has led Burnley to promotion back to the Premier League, and another unnamed candidate also on Chelsea’s wish list. The club hope to announce their new head coach before the end of the season.

As for former Paris Saint-Germain boss Pochettino, The Telegraph claim that he was “interviewed by Chelsea and impressed owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali before they appointed Graham Potter”, while The Athletic report that “Pochettino has spoken about some of the current players that he wants to keep as part of his potential roster”.