Zinedine Zidane has ruled out taking over at Bayern Munich, amid suggestions Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag is also of interest to the Bundesliga giants.
Bayern have been frustrated in their search for a successor to Thomas Tuchel, who is set to leave the club at the end of the season after overseeing their first failure to win the Bundesliga since 2012.
Preferred candidate Xabi Alonso – who was also linked with Liverpool – has reaffirmed his commitment to Bayer Leverkusen, while Julian Nagelsmann decided to continue as Germany boss after being linked with a return to the Allianz Arena.
Ralf Rangnick was the latest coach to be linked with the Bavarian giants last week, only for the Austria boss to follow Alonso and Nagelsmann by saying he will stay in his current role.
That leaves Bayern back to square one in their bid to find a replacement for Tuchel, who has refused to rule out a dramatic U-turn. One man who will not be taking over, however, is Zidane.
While attending the Miami Grand Prix, the former Real Madrid coach was asked by Sky Sports Germany if he expected Los Blancos to overcome Bayern in the teams' Champions League semi-final tie.
Asked who he thought would reach the final, Zidane said: "Hopefully Madrid, but it's going to be a difficult game."
Zidane was then asked whether he was in contention for the Bayern job, to which he said: "No. I'm just going to watch the game."
Another man touted as a possible candidate to replace Tuchel, Julen Lopetegui, has reportedly agreed to take charge of West Ham at the end of the season.
On Sunday, a report from Sky Sports claimed the Bundesliga giants are also considering a surprise move for United boss Ten Hag, who coached Bayern's second team between 2013 and 2015.
Ten Hag has come under severe pressure this season with United facing a fight to qualify for the Europa League, but the Dutchman is reportedly uninterested in a move.
Man Utd decision was 'now or never' for Amorim
Ruben Amorim says the decision to move to Manchester United during the season was made for him, after he was told it was "now or never".
The 39-year-old Sporting Lisbon coach is set to make the move to Manchester on November 11, despite wanting to wait until the end of the season to make the switch.
The move was announced on Friday, with Amorim agreeing on a contract that will keep him at the club until 2027.
He becomes the sixth permanent manager at United since Alex Ferguson's departure 11 years ago.
Sporting have made a flying start to the season with 10 wins from 10 putting them top of the Primeira Liga table, but Amorim was keen to attest he would have preferred to continue his victorious streak.
"The season started, we started very well, and then Manchester United came, they pay above the compensation clause and the president defends the club's interests," he explained.
"I never discussed anything with the president. For three days, I said I wanted to stay until the end of the season, but then I was told it was not possible.
"It was now or never, or Manchester would go for another option. So, I had three days to make my mind up, to make a decision that radically changes my life."
Amorim brought substantial success to the Portuguese capital, winning two league titles in the space of four seasons after the club had failed to do so in the 19 years prior.
Despite being one of the most promising coaches in the game, the Lisbon-born manager asserted that only a call from Manchester would persuade him to leave his home club.
"I've had other opportunities - the president and [director of football] Hugo Viana can confirm this," he added. "It's not the first or the second time that I have been requested by another team, and I don't want another team.
"After Sporting I wanted that one, Manchester, and I want that context because that context allows me to do things my way, and the club believes me that way.
"There's a time when I have to take a step forward in my career. That's what happened. It was harder for me than any Sporting fan, believe me, but I had to do this."
T&T's captain David, striker Garcia welcome Yorke's appointment as Soca Warriors Head coach
Trinidad and Tobago’s captain Aubrey David and Greece-based striker Levi Garcia welcomed the appointment of former player Dwight Yorke as the new senior Soca Warriors Head coach.
Both David and Garcia believe Yorke’s appointment augurs well for the future of the Soca Warriors setup, as both pointed to his experience and knowledge of the game as key components to nurture young talent and, by extension, drive development.
“I’m excited about Dwight Yorke’s appointment. His experience and knowledge of the game would be a massive plus for us. He has played at the highest level and led our country to our first World Cup, so he surely knows what it takes to get us there again,” Guatemala-based defender David stated.
“I am very hopeful that his leadership will inspire a new era of success and development in Trinidad and Tobago football,” he added.
Garcia echoed similar sentiments, while pointing to the fact that the former Manchester United star also have huge task of qualifying the Twin Island Republic to the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup.
“I wish him all the best. I think he can get the job done. I really and truly believe that with the experience that he has had, and all that he has done, hopefully it could work out with his coaching career, and we could come together as one and give the country that boost,” Garcia stated.
“Hopefully, he will be able to bring out the best not only in the team but in some of the youngsters to secure their future,” he noted.
'Exceptional' Fernandes can thrive under Amorim, says former Man Utd coach Meulensteen
Ruben Amorim's impending appointment as Manchester United boss will benefit skipper Bruno Fernandes, former Red Devils coach Rene Meulensteen believes.
United confirmed on Friday, four days after they sacked Ten Hag, that Amorim would be coming in as their new head coach.
The 39-year-old, who has won the Portuguese title twice in the space of three years, will join the Red Devils officially from November 11, after serving a notice period with Sporting CP.
United have agreed to pay Sporting around £9.2million (€11m) in compensation, with Amorim signing a contract that will keep him at Old Trafford until June 2027.
He will link up with compatriot Fernandes, who also swapped the Portuguese capital for Manchester back in January 2020.
The skipper has been directly involved in 151 goals since his debut, the most of any midfielder across Europe's top five leagues during that time.
And Meulensteen, who spent 12 years on the coaching staff at Old Trafford, thinks Fernandes will thrive under Amorim, and hopefully cut out some bad habits.
"It's always important, but all managers expect certain things, have certain expectations from Bruno," he told Stats Perform.
"I do think Bruno is an exceptional player. He's been so important in so many goals, in terms of his assists and contributing goals himself.
"Although, there's also another side that we've seen in Bruno - which you don't like to see as a club captain - a little bit of petulant behaviour, like throwing the toys out of the pram if things are not going well.
"Obviously, they're both Portuguese, so that helps them in terms of speaking in their native language.
"It's going to be interesting. The way that he sets up his teams, he doesn't play with out-and-out wingers. He plays far more with people in between the pockets, which [the likes of Bruno] are suited to.
"As soon as he steps over that line and steps through the door, we will see very, very quickly how he's going to shape up the team."
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