Chelsea lead Tottenham in Nagelsmann chase, manager wants Premier League stint

Premier League clubs Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur are set to slug it out to appoint former Bayern Munich manager Julian Nagelsmann.

However, according to Sky Sports reporter Melissa Reddy, the Blues are ahead of their London counterparts in the race for the 35-year-old tactician.

Nagelsmann was dismissed by the Bayern hierarchy two weeks ago – a decision that shocked the footballing world as he seemed to be on course to meet their very lofty targets.

The German champions claimed the manager’s ‘negative sporting development‘ was the reason for his dismissal and he was replaced by former Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel.

Nagelsmann is now free to negotiate with clubs interested in his services – although he remains on Bayern’s payroll as he was sacked barely two years into his initial five-year deal.

The former RB Leipzig boss is highly sought after, especially in the Premier League, with managerless Chelsea and their local rivals Spurs sounding out interest.

Whichever club gets to him first will need to shell out a compensation fee, but that is unlikely to deter interest in the German manager.

Nagelsmann holds a long-standing interest in plying his trade in the English top-flight but will not rush into a decision over his future.

Chelsea reportedly have reservations about him due to his age, but Nagelsmann’s CV more than qualifies him to pick up where Graham Potter left off at Stamford Bridge.

Potter was relieved of his duties after steering Chelsea towards the bottom half of the table – although he did secure a Champions League quarter-final berth which was the only positive in his hit-and-miss appointment.

Chelsea are also cautious of rushing into another managerial decision and will conduct an exhaustive search for Potter’s successor, with the likes of Luis Enrique, Mauricio Pochettino and Luciano Spalletti also on the club’s radar.

Spurs also share an identical shortlist as they search for Antonio Conte’s successor, but like their local rivals, Nagelsmann tops their wanted list.

The north Londoners are also looking at Eintracht Frankfurt manager Oliver Glasner who guided the Germans to a Europa League triumph last season.

Nagelsmann is in demand, with Spanish giants Real Madrid also eyeing a move for the young tactician with Carlo Ancelotti’s future up in the air.

However, Pochettino, who is also in line for a sensational Spurs return, is considered the favourite for the Madrid job, leaving the London rivals to slug it out for one of the best young managers in world football.