Newcastle United made Brendan Rodgers their number one target to replace Steve Bruce – but it doesn’t look like he will be leaving Leicester City.
Sky Italia reported on Wednesday afternoon that Rodgers was in pole position to land the Newcastle job.
Bruce hasn’t even gone yet, but Newcastle were allegedly willing to pay €16million (£13.6million) to land Rodgers.
The problem is that Newcastle’s love for Rodgers is somewhat unrequited.
The Daily Mail report that Rodgers will reject any approach from Newcastle’s Saudi Arabian owners.
The reason? Well, Rodgers thinks he can do a little better than Newcastle, even with their new riches.
Rodgers instead thinks he can land the Manchester City job way down the line in 2023.
City are preparing for Pep Guardiola to leave in just over 18 months, and Rodgers is a top candidate to replace him.
The Northern Irishman subsequently doesn’t want the Newcastle job, putting all his eggs in City’s basket.
After a poor start to the season with Leicester, that could be risky for Rodgers.
As for Newcastle, they will move on to other targets. Rodgers may not want the job, but plenty will – and they no doubt want to beat Rodgers in the future.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
