Thomas Tuchel is continuing his push to reunite with Chelsea assistant coach Anthony Barry at Bayern Munich.
Since being appointed as the sacked Julian Nagelsmann’s successor with the reigning Bundesliga champions last week, Tuchel has immediately and publicly set his sights on raiding his former club to bolster his backroom team at the Allianz Arena.
Barry is now understood to have agreed to stay away from Chelsea matches and training at Cobham until the matter is resolved, per the Daily Telegraph, having communicated his wish to join Bayern after an official approach was initially made on Monday.
The German giants and Chelsea are said to remain far apart on their respective valuations of the 36-year-old after an offer of compensation was submitted.
Barry joined Chelsea during the managerial reign of Frank Lampard in August 2020, following three years spent as a highly-rated first-team coach at Wigan. He survived Lampard’s sacking and continued to impress under replacement Tuchel, helping the Blues to win the Champions League in 2021.
Barry also retained his prominent role on Chelsea’s coaching staff following the dismissal of Tuchel in September, remaining a key figure under his third Stamford Bridge boss in Graham Potter.
He also has experience of international coaching, having previously combined his club duties with a role in the Republic of Ireland set-up under Stephen Kenny before a short-lived part-time stint on Roberto Martinez’s Belgium staff.
Prior to becoming a coach, Barry had a 13-year playing career as a midfielder, representing a number of EFL and non-league clubs including Coventry, Accrington Stanley, Yeovil, Chester, Wrexham, Fleetwood and Forest Green before retiring in 2017.
