Skip to content

Report: Southampton not considering Pellegrini for managerial job

Rebecca Naden / Reuters

Manuel Pellegrini is apparently out of the reckoning for the Southampton manager's job following his exit from Manchester City this summer.

The Russian Football Union reportedly wants the Chilean to succeed departing national team boss Leonid Slutsky. The organisation has hopes to tempt Pellegrini, which have been boosted by Southampton's quelling interest in the available gaffer, according to The Telegraph's Jeremy Wilson.

Former OGC Nice manager Claude Puel and Fenerbahce's Vitor Pereira are believed to be in the frame, as they have additional interviews for the Saints' post next week. Meanwhile, Jurgen Klinsmann, who's been overseeing the United States since 2011, has never been under consideration.

Southampton has been forced to look for a new boss after Ronald Koeman was tempted by the newfound riches of Everton. The south coast outfit has developed a fine track record in appointing talented yet sometimes under-the-radar coaches to be in charge of first-team affairs, having identified two title-winning managers in Puel and Pereira.

Key qualities that Southampton is said to be looking for in Koeman's successor are an insistence on playing high-pressing and passing football, and experience in taking teams into European competition.

The Saints kick off their 2016-17 Premier League campaign with a visit from Watford on the weekend of Aug. 13.

Daily Newsletter

Get the latest trending sports news daily in your inbox