Klopp to stay at Dortmund.
Borussia Dortmund boss Jurgen Klopp has ruled himself out of the running to become Chelsea’s next manager after insisting he is happy at Singal Iduna Park.
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Chelsea are managed by interim boss Rafael Benitez at present but the Spaniard is unlikely to be offered a permanent deal in the summer.
Owner Roman Abramovich was known to favour ex-Barcelona boss Pep Guardiola but the Spaniard has opted to take over Bayern Munich next July.
Speculation has linked Real Madrid head-coach Jose Mourinho with a dramatic return to Stamford Bridge, while Klopp is also among the front-runners after working wonders at Bundesliga champions Dortmund.
But the German insist he has no intention of leaving the club.
“I have a contract until 2016. I have said 20 times I’ll definitely stay until 2016. Everybody thinks I say it but that if a club like Chelsea or Real Madrid come in for me, I will go. This is something I can’t change but they will see,” the 45-year-old told the Evening Standard.
“I was the coach at Mainz before Dortmund for seven years. Each year I could have left for a Bundesliga club but I said ‘no, I have a contract, I will stay’. I enjoy what I’m doing here at Dortmund. It’s a great club, a great city, everything is okay.
“It is a really big honour for me, coming from a small village called Bretten in the Black Forest where 1,500 people live, that somebody thinks I can train Chelsea. It’s not a normal story, it’s a special story. But I don’t think about it.
“I had this situation when I was in Mainz. It’s not about the money for me. I have enough to eat three times a day! It’s a big honour, but in this moment I’m not on the market, I’m sorry!”
Dortmund have warned Chelsea that any move for Klopp will be unwelcome.
Sporting director Michael Zorc said: “It is not worth Chelsea ringing us. There is no chance at all, at least until 2016.
“Even if they offered compensation the answer would still be no. Even though we are not a bank with too much money, we don’t need it. That’s our situation. He’s priceless. We are committed to each other – we gave our word.
“He won’t stop his work here just because Chelsea offer him a lot of money – that is not the way he thinks.
“Before he was at Dortmund, he was at Mainz for seven years. It is not the most attractive club in the world but he stuck to it because he has a long-term view and likes to develop and create an era.”
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