Sports agenda: Julian Nagelsmann pulled out of Chelsea running over recruitment process concerns

Julian Nagelsmann pulled out of the race to become the next Chelsea manager after harboring serious concerns about the recruitment process, sources have revealed.

The German would have had the impression that the job was his and that conversations were a formality.

After a succession of meetings, however, the unrest grew and reports that managers such as Mauricio Pochettino and Vincent Kompany were also being considered.

On Friday, with growing doubts, ex-Bayern Munich boss Nagelsmann decided to step down.

Former Tottenham manager Pochettino, who is believed to have made a serious impression in the talks, is now widely expected to succeed Graham Potter with a decision looming in the coming days.

Broad back in Lahore after terror attack

Chris Broad flew back to Pakistan for the first time since being involved in the 2009 Lahore terrorist attack.

The former England batsman, and father of bowler Stuart, is the match umpire for the Pakistan v New Zealand one-day series, which begins on Thursday.

It is an incredibly brave move by the 65-year-old, who witnessed the deaths of six police officers and a driver when the Sri Lanka coach and the minibus he was in with match officials were attacked as they made their way to the ground.

Broad was hailed as a hero when he broke out of cover to put pressure on injured referee Ahsan Raza. Broad also saw the driver of the bus fatally hit in the neck, as the glass shattered all around.

EFL clubs angry on Twitter

EFL clubs are outraged by recent changes to Twitter, masterminded by the social media platform’s controversial new owner, Elon Musk.

The league received assurances from Twitter staff that both EFL clubs and the EFL would keep their gold verification checkmarks.

However, no less than 30 club accounts – and the EFL itself – lost their symbols and clubs seething last week.

Twitter’s reaction would have been minimal. The checkmarks are intended to assure the public that the accounts are authentic.

United’s staggering number of employees

Much attention has been paid to the overspending of players at Manchester United following their Europa League defeat to Sevilla, whose selection cost a fraction of their opponent’s.

However, it appears that such generosity is extending to United’s off-field operation.

The latest figures showed that United had no fewer than 1,233 employees on December 31 last year. Five years ago that number was 922 and in June 2021 it was still 971.

United say they have taken on a number of temporary staff who work in permanent positions in the club shop and on match days and are proud to be one of the North West’s largest employers.

They add that five years ago there was no women’s team, that is now an important part of the club.

Stay away from Greece, Steve!

Steven Gerrard has recently been linked to the management position at Greek giant Olympiacos, which is owned by Evangelos Marinakis, the Greek owner of Premier League club Nottingham Forest.

While such a move would be seen as left-wing, insiders in Greece say the former Aston Villa manager would be unwise to take on the role in the wake of more alleged in-game corruption in the country.

In the most recent incident, England’s head of the Greek refereeing committee, Steve Bennett, replaced neutral Polish referees with a Greek team of referees for the AEK vs Aris play-off match after a bizarre sequence of events.

It was alleged that the Polish officials were drunk and abusive on the plane to Athens, and although they denied the allegations, they were resigned.

According to Greek media, the decision angered Olympiakos, who claimed the incident was an attempt to ensure that Greek referees were used for the match rivals AEK eventually won.

The youths of City show the senior team the way

While the seniors are locked in a two-horse race with Arsenal for the Premier League title, there were no worries for Manchester City’s youngsters, who clinched the Premier League 2 title for a third consecutive year on Sunday.

Led by former Rochdale manager Brian Barry-Murphy, City’s elite development side defeated Blackburn 3–0 to win the league with two games to spare, scoring 73 goals in 24 games.

Boehly’s eyebrows are not uncommon at United

While Todd Boehly’s presence in the Chelsea dressing room has recently raised eyebrows, visits to the inner sanctum of directors from other clubs are common.

At Manchester United, it is tradition for executives to enter the dressing room after the final whistle – whatever the result – as a show of solidarity.

Surprise a guest in Huddersfield

Should Neil Warnock and Huddersfield fail to get satisfaction after moaning to the EFL that Burnley recently fielded a weakened team against relegation rivals Reading, they could perhaps turn to Jerry Hall for a witness statement.

The ex-wife of Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger was a surprise guest in the director’s box for the Championship match, which ended 0-0.

Huddersfield has shouted viciously after the Clarets made six changes, although they are not believed to have broken any rules. So it may very well be that you can’t always get what you want for the Yorkshire side.

Hectic start for new cycling boss

A busy day ahead for British Cycling’s new CEO, Jon Dutton, who takes up his role on Monday. Dutton joins the organization at an important time as they continue to search for a key commercial partner after HSBC withdrew their funding four years earlier.

Dutton replaces Brian Facer, who stepped down just three weeks after British Cycling announced a partnership with Shell UK that was criticized by environmental groups.

Joining after his stint as chief executive of the Rugby League World Cup and ahead of Scotland’s first combined world championships in August, Dutton will look to provide much-needed stability for British Cycling.

Sky Sports make BBC signing

Sky Sports has signed up for BBC Radio 5 Live Sports editor, Louise Sutton. In a move that doesn’t seem to have gone over well with the Beeb, Sutton will lead Sky’s tennis coverage.

This column revealed that the broadcaster was in the process of introducing a dedicated tennis channel after acquiring the rights for ATP and WTA Tours, with an announcement expected soon on all of the above.

A terse email to BBC staff informed them that Sutton, who joined after the hasty departure of predecessor Mike Carr, had left to pursue an opportunity elsewhere. The BBC declined to comment further.