Sevilla boss Jorge Sampaoli has revealed he quit as manager of Chile because he wanted to become Chelsea manager.
The Argentine was heavily linked with a move to Stamford Bridge after guiding Chile to their first ever Copa America win in 2015.
The 57-year-old held private talks with Roman Abramovich over a move to west London after Jose Mourinho was sacked last season.
Chelsea opted to appoint Antonio Conte and will have no regrets given his success during his debut season at the club but Sampaoli has admitted he quit his role with Chelsea to take over at Stamford Bridge.
‘It was like a tsunami of events, a really turbulent period. The Chilean Federation wanted to keep me no matter what,’ Sampaoli told The Sun.
‘But I explained I could not stay as there was a chance of becoming Chelsea manager.
‘I had other options but when Mr [Roman] Abramovich came to talk I was high on his list and then came the decision to go with [Antonio] Conte.’
Sampaoli was a wanted man after quitting Chile and he took over the reins at Sevilla last summer.
The La Liga giants are currently in fourth, just seven points behind Barcelona.
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