Ex-Sheffield United and Leeds United manager claims he turned down Chelsea job – on more than one occasions

Ex-Sheffield United and Leeds United manager claims he turned down Chelsea job – on more than one occasions
Published 19th Feb 2025, 12:34 GMT
Sheffield United, Leeds United and Huddersfield Town are among the clubs to have been managed by Neil Warnock.
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The 76-year-old may not have a CV filled with Premier League and European honours, yet is among the most recognisable faces in English football.

Many of Warnock’s managerial reigns have been in Yorkshire, with Middlesbrough and Rotherham United also among those to have employed him.

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A number of clubs have tried and failed to hire Warnock over the years – and he has claimed Chelsea are among them.

Neil Warnock is among the most recognisable figures in English football.
Neil Warnock is among the most recognisable figures in English football. | Ryan Hiscott/Getty Images
Speaking to goalkeeping icon David Seaman on the Seaman Says podcast, Warnock insisted he could have managed the Blyes in the early 1990s.

He said: “I took Notts County up from the third division to the first, which is the Premier League now.

“In consecutive years, I turned Chelsea down. I turned Sunderland down and stayed put.

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Neil Warnock oversaw a great escape at Huddersfield Town in 2023.
Neil Warnock oversaw a great escape at Huddersfield Town in 2023. | Matt McNulty/Getty Images
“Then they sacked me six months later. It destroyed me up here, I thought. After what I’d done, I thought ‘wow’.”

Warnock is now retired from management and is a regular on the media circuit. His last job was north of the border with Aberdeen, but his time at Pittodrie proved to be short-lived.

He now holds a football advisory role with non-league Torquay United.

MORE: Neil Warnock opens up on Huddersfield Town exit as he criticises Terriers decision-making

Related topics:ChelseaMiddlesbroughNotts County

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