Aston Villa are updating their manager shortlist amid reports Thomas Tuchel has no interest in becoming their new boss.
Villa are on the hunt for their next manager after sacking Steven Gerrard following the team's 3-0 defeat to Fulham at Craven Cottage. That result leaves the West Midlands club 17th in the Premier League, sitting outside of the relegation zone on goal difference.
Mauricio Pochettino is the current bookies' favourite to get the Villa job, with QPR boss Michael Beale, Brentford manager Thomas Frank and free agent Sean Dyche also in the frame. Yet one man who isn't expected to turn up at Villa Park is Tuchel.
As reported by The Telegraph's Matt Law, Tuchel will politely resist any approach from Villa. It's believed the German has no interest in the job - even if the Premier League side offer huge wages. He has been out of work since leaving Chelsea last month.
Hiring Tuchel would be a massive coup for Villa. He's won 10 trophies as a manager at Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund - including the two Ligue 1 titles and the Champions League - and was named as FIFA's Best Football Coach last year.
Pochettino would also be a shock appointment. He transformed Tottenham from into genuine contenders during his five-and-a-half-year spell at the club. They reached the Champions League and League Cup finals - and finished second in the Premier League.
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Like Tuchel, Pochettino is currently unattached after being sacked by PSG in the summer. Ironically, the Argentine was Tuchel's successor in the French capital. It's unclear at this stage whether Pochettino would be interested in the Villa job.
In terms of the other candidates, Villa will find it difficult persuading Beale to ditch QPR. Gerrard's former assistant at Villa Park turned down the Wolves job just a few days ago and has pledged his future to QPR. The Londoners are currently top of the Championship.
Dyche is the most likely candidate at this moment in time. During his 10-year spell at Burnley, he twice won promotion to the Premier League and led them into the Europa League. Villa are looking for a manager who can lead them into Europe.
Whether Dyche is glamorous enough for Christian Purslow will be his biggest sticking point, as the ambitious Villa CEO may be after a manager with a top-flight title to his name. Other names in the hat include Unai Emery, Rafa Benitez and Nuno Espirito Santo.
Purslow issued a statement on Gerrard's departure on Friday morning. He said: "The board has come to this decision following a full evaluation of results and performances over the calendar year.
"We were clear when we appointed Steven that we set an objective of continuous improvement but that has not been achieved despite everybody’s best efforts and we believe the time is right to make these changes now. The process of appointing a new Head Coach is underway and we will update supporters as soon as possible."
