Chelsea believe they could use their coach Anthony Barry as a makeweight in the possible negotiations with Bayern Munich over Julian Nagelsmann, according to Sky Sports’ Rob Dorset.
The Blues reportedly held an in-person meeting with Nagelsmann last week as part of the process of their search for a new permanent manager.
The club have yet to make any final decision, since they are reportedly still talking to other candidates as well, but the uncertainty over Nagelsmann‘s contract at Bayern could be a problem if they were to go for him.
Dorset claims that Chelsea are working on finding out the details at the moment, but Bayern’s — or more specifically Thomas Tuchel’s — interest in their assistant coach Barry could prove useful.
“My understanding is that Chelsea’s lawyers want to know the terms of [Nagelsmann’s contract with Bayern] are so that they can be ready to move if they want to,” Dorset told Sky Sports when speaking about the Blues’ manager hunt.
“If it is still within that contract period and we don’t know how long [Nagelsmann’s] gardening period is, by the way… what are the terms, we don’t know.
“That’s what Chelsea’s lawyers want to find out; would they have to pay compensation if they go for Nagelsmann in the summer? They may have to.
“One of the interesting things, though, is that [Chelsea assistant coach] Anthony Barry is on gardening leave as well because Bayern made an approach to take him.
“Tuchel wants him as part of his backroom staff.
“He could be a very useful makeweight from Chelsea’s perspective if they decide to go for Nagelsmann.
“[It would be] a complicated negotiation all around, I think.”
Nagelsmann signed a five-year contract with Bayern in 2021, which means he may be tied to the Bundesliga champions until 2026 if there is no clause about an early departure in the deal.
That said, Bayern are unlikely to be happy to be paying their former manager’s salary for the next three years, either, aren’t they?
The sooner Nagelsmann finds a new club, the better it is for Bayern from a financial perspective.
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