Cross off another potential manager from the Chelsea short-list as Borussia Dortmund boss Jurgen Klopp has told Chelsea that he is staying in Germany.
Klopp has told the Evening Standard that he will be staying with the reigning German champions despite being flattered by interest from Chelsea.
‘I have a contract until 2016. I have said 20 times I’ll definitely stay until 2016,’ said 45-year-old Klopp.
‘Everybody thinks I say it but that if a club like Chelsea or Real Madrid come in for me, I will go. This is something I can’t change but they will see.’
Klopp added:
‘It is a really big honour for me, coming from a small village called Bretten in the Black Forest where 1,500 people live, that somebody thinks I can train Chelsea. It’s not a normal story, it’s a special story. But I don’t think about it.
‘I was the coach at Mainz before Dortmund for seven years. Each year I could have left for a Bundesliga club but I said ‘no, I have a contract, I will stay’. I enjoy what I’m doing here at Dortmund. It’s a great club, a great city, everything is okay.’
Klopp is the second big name manage to turn down Chelsea Roman Abramovich this year, after No 1 target Pep Guardiola spurned Abramovich’s money to join Bayern Munich.
So where does that leave Chelsea and their managerial hunt? It looks like the shortlist contains two former Chelsea managers; Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti as well as Everton’s David Moyes. If Chelsea cannot land one of them, I would not be surprised to see Rafa Benitez brought back next season, if he finishes in the top four this season. And that will be a move that will be massively unpopular with Chelsea fans.
