Chelsea have reportedly held their opening round of talks with Julian Nagelsmann regarding the managerial vacancy at Stamford Bridge.
Since Graham Potter was given the boot by the Blues earlier this month, a plethora of top European head coaches have been tipped to succeed the Englishman in West London.
Former Blues boss and legendary midfielder Frank Lampard was handed the reins on an interim basis until the end of the season, as the Blues board conduct a thorough search for a new manager for the 2023-24 season.
Only a couple of weeks before Potter was sacked by Chelsea, Nagelsmann was surprisingly relieved of his duties by Bayern, who have since replaced him with ex-Blues head coach Thomas Tuchel.
In the wake of Nagelsmann's shock departure from Bayern, the 35-year-old has quickly been earmarked as a leading managerial candidate for Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur, who are on the hunt for a successor to Antonio Conte.
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Nagelsmann is not expected to make a decision on his next career path for another couple of months, but it was reported last week that he was offered to present his ideas to Chelsea.
Now, The Times claims that Chelsea co-sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart chaired their maiden meeting with Nagelsmann on Thursday, speaking to the German in person.
However, the report adds that no preferred candidate has been identified just yet, as calls were being made with other managers either side of their discussion with Nagelsmann, who could also be on the radar of Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid this summer.
Bayern cited a decline in performances since the World Cup as a factor in Nagelsmann's sacking, as the German departed with a record of 60 wins, 14 draws and 10 losses after taking over from Hansi Flick in 2021.
As many as seven coaches could come under consideration for the job by Winstanley and Stewart, who will subsequently present their findings to co-owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali.
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Boehly and Eghbali will then have the final say on a new head coach for Chelsea, who have lost all three of their games under Lampard since the 44-year-old returned to the dugout.
Lampard has overseen defeats to Wolverhampton Wanderers, Real Madrid and Brighton & Hove Albion so far, taking a 1-0 lead against the latter on Saturday only to suffer a 2-1 beating.
With just seven games to go in the 2022-23 season, Chelsea sit closer to the relegation zone than the top four, languishing in 11th place and 17 points adrift of Newcastle United in the final Champions League spot.
The Blues prepare to host Real Madrid in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Tuesday aiming to reverse a 2-0 deficit from the Santiago Bernabeu clash, where Karim Benzema and Marco Asensio struck either side of the half-time whistle.
As well as speaking to Nagelsmann, Chelsea are also rumoured to have held talks with Sporting Lisbon boss Ruben Amorim, while Luis Enrique and Marcelo Gallardo are thought to be realistic contenders to take over as well.
Ben Knapton
