Chelsea 'held talks with Red Bull's Head of Global Soccer Oliver Mintzlaff' as they search for a sporting director - but Christoph Freund is the frontrunner for the role.
The Blues' American owner Todd Boehly expressed his admiration for the Red Bull model of a network of clubs around the globe and plans to establish something similar at Stamford Bridge.
And their pursuit of a sporting director to oversee this overhaul of the club saw them try to poach Red Bull's main man.
The Athletic report that Chelsea explored the possibility of hiring Mintzlaff, who is also chief executive of Bundesliga club RB Leipzig.