Listing the 5 renowned managers who rejected Chelsea
Premier League club Chelsea are based out of Fulham, West London. The club was founded in 1905, but only tasted major success in the 21st century. That notably happened after their takeover by Russian billionaire businessman Roman Abramovich.
Abramovich brought in a desire for excellence and a hunger to win - something that was previously lacking at Stamford Bridge. Along with that, he brought in a massive budget for the club to invest in transfers, training facilities, youth academy at Cobham and scouting networks.
The revolution at Chelsea made it a popular destination for managers across Europe to come and test their mettle. Abramovich's unrelenting approach towards hiring and firing meant there were many top managers who came and went.
10 managers have been sacked since Roman Abramovich bought Chelsea in 2003. https://t.co/fMUTMEk29J
Chelsea first got major recognition with their back-to-back Premier League title wins under Jose Mourinho in 2004 and 2005. Interestingly, the club sacked him twice.
The Blues tasted their first European success under their former caretaker manager Roberto di Matteo in 2012, winning the UEFA Champions League. They followed that up by winning the UEFA Europa League in 2013 with Rafael Benitez. However, both Di Matteo and Benitez had short spells at the club, and were soon sacked due to inconsistent results.
In hindsight, the approach Abramovich adopted has brought forth success and trophies for Chelsea. The Blues won their second Champions League title earlier this year under manager Thomas Tuchel, who achieved glory in his first season in charge.
Since Thomas Tuchel was named Chelsea manager on 26th January 2021:
◉ UEFA Champions League winner
◉ UEFA Super Cup winner
◉ UEFA Men's Coach of the Year
Sweeping up. #UCLdraw https://t.co/JVv728rlNB
However, Chelsea's approach has also led to some dead ends in the recruitment process. On that note, here's a look at five managers who were not quite convinced by Abramovich's Chelsea project and rejected the club:
#5 Jurgen Klinsmann
Jurgen Klinsmann is a former player and manager. The former striker played for the likes of Inter Milan, Bayern Munich and Tottenham Hotspur. Klinsmann was also part of the West German team that won the 1990 FIFA World Cup, as well as the unified German team that won UEFA Euro 1996.
He has managed the German and American national teams, as well as Hertha Berlin and Bayern Munich. He was key in guiding Germany to a third-place finish at the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Klinsmann also won the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup with the United States.
57.3 - Jurgen Klinsmann won 57.3 percent of his games while in charge of the U.S. Men's National Team, the best of any USMNT manager. Gone.
After his exploits at the World Cup in 2006, Klinsmann was offered a two-year deal by Bayern Munich, which he duly signed. However, the Bavarians weren't his only suitors.
Jurgen Klinsmann was approached by Chelsea to become their manager in 2007 following Mourinho's first sacking. The German reportedly declined the offer, explaining that he would prefer to wait for a vacancy to open up for the England manager's role.
Chelsea eventually decided to go with one of Abramovich's close friends, Israeli manager Avram Grant.
#4 Ralf Rangnick
Ralf Rangnick is a German football manager who began his managerial career in 1983. He first gained recognition with VFB Stuttgart, winning the UEFA Intertoto Cup with them in 2000.
Rangnick had brief spells with Hannover 96 and Schalke 04 after that, where he was dismissed on both occasions. He then rejoined Hannover, and won consecutive promotions, bringing the club back to the Bundesliga.
He then returned to Schalke in 2011, winning the DFB Pokal and reaching the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League. Rangnick has since managed RB Leipzig in two spells between 2015 and 2019. He is currently the interim manager of Manchester United. However, the Red Devils' rivals, Chelsea, had approached him before that, which Rangnick declined.
"When Chelsea contacted me it was just for four months interim manager" 👀
Ralf Rangnick explains why he turned down a move to Chelsea earlier this year - but he could not reject Manchester United https://t.co/Jt38i6pV5N
The German revealed recently that he was approached by Chelsea towards the end of Frank Lampard's tenure at the beginning of 2021. However, he was put off by the duration of the offered contract - four months - and had no choice but to decline the offer. Rangnick explained:
“At the time, when Chelsea contacted me in February, they only spoke about the option to become interim manager for four months, without any perspective to work in the long-term together."
He went on to compare Chelsea's offer to what Manchester United have offered him, saying:
“Here now (at Manchester United), we are talking about six and a half months. We only have one third of all the games played in the Premier League. As you all know, we have also agreed upon a two-year advisory role after those six and a half months. In the end, to be honest, if a club like Manchester United contacts you for such a role, you cannot possibly turn them down.”
It remains to be seen whether Chelsea are left to regret the missed chance they had with Rangnick, depending on how he fares with United this season.
As of now, though, Thomas Tuchel's Blues look set to contend for top silverware this season as well. Chelsea are miles ahead of Ralf Rangnick's Manchester United in the Premier League table.