Saturday, 16th February, 2013
Manuel Pellegrini turned down an offer to take over as Roma coach less than two weeks ago, while Chelsea have also made informal contact about the Chilean’s availability, his agent has claimed.
The former Real Madrid boss has worked wonders at Malaga despite financial turbulence which has caused several of the club’s stars to be offloaded.
The Chilean tactician has Malaga in the Champions League Round of 16, where they are due to lock horns with FC Porto, and sitting fourth in La Liga.
Pellegrini’s talents were recently recognised by Roma who, searching for a replacement for Zdenek Zeman, enquired about the coach’s availability, with agent Jesus Martinez commenting to Chilean daily El Mercurio that "we had a formal offer from Roma, but we turned it down.
"It was less than 15 days ago, but we rejected it because it is the middle of the season."
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And it is not just the Giallorossi who rate Pellegrini.
"Chelsea and other clubs have asked about him, through intermediaries, but there is nothing official.
"Manuel Pellegrini would love to coach in the Premier League, as well as Germany, Italy and other major championships.
"And we have plenty of time to analyse what we will do next season."
Pellegrini may well want reassurances about Malaga’s financial health if he is to remain at the Spanish side for the 2013/14 campaign.
While even if those arrive, the Chilean tactician could not help but be attracted to some of the biggest clubs in the game, if offered a tempting post.
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