Julian Nagelsmann is the leading contender to replace sacked Graham Potter at Chelsea

Chelsea sacked Graham Potter on Sunday after the club’s American owners finally lost faith in their first managerial appointment.

As Sportsmail revealed on Tuesday, former Bayern Munich head coach Julian Nagelsmann is among the contenders to replace Potter and it is understood that initial contact, through intermediaries, has already taken place.

Chelsea may struggle to persuade the 35-year-old to take a job so soon after his sacking at Bayern 10 days ago, but Nagelsmann, who is also wanted by Tottenham to replace Antonio Conte, is viewed by many at Stamford Bridge as the strongest candidate. 

Mauricio Pochettino, who was a contender for the position following Thomas Tuchel’s sacking in September, is available.

But the fact he was overlooked for the role as Chelsea eventually appointed Potter may suggest the Blues will explore other options first.

Contact has already been made with the club, who are currently languishing in 11th

Stamford Bridge owners have been considering Potter’s future for a number of weeks following a dreadful Premier League season that leaves them languishing in mid-table.

While a number of influential figures behind the scenes had decided a while ago that Potter was not the right man to take the club forward, others believed the former Brighton boss deserved longer to prove his credentials.

The recent victories against Leeds, Borussia Dortmund and Leicester eased the pressure on Potter but the subsequent home draw versus Everton and Saturday’s loss to Aston Villa has cost Potter his job.

Well-placed sources told Sportsmail on Saturday night that Potter was in ‘massive’ trouble following the home loss to Villa – but the early indications were on Sunday morning that he would get the Liverpool game.

Indeed, the club sent out a media notice on Sunday morning confirming Potter would conduct the pre-Liverpool press conference.

However, the sense that Potter was no longer the right man to lead Chelsea accelerated after talks on Sunday afternoon and he sacked in statement that dropped at 8pm.

Potter was informed of the decision in-person at Chelsea’s Cobham training ground.

It was a decision led by co-sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart, backed up by co-controlling owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali.

Graham Potter was sacked after 12 wins from 31 games as Blues boss, with Saturday’s 2-0 loss to Aston Villa the final straw for Todd Boehly

Todd Boehly (right) saw fit to part ways with Potter and the search for a new boss is on

Winstanley and Stewart, supported by Boehly and Eghbali, will now lead what Chelsea intend to be an ‘exhaustive’ search for a replacement for Potter.

In the meantime, Bruno Saltor, who followed Potter to Chelsea from Brighton, has been placed in interim charge and is now tasked with leading Chelsea who concluded a change had to be made now in order for them to give them the best chance of salvaging something from the season.

The Villa defeat saw Chelsea fall into the bottom half of the table.

They have 10 league games remaining and are still in the Champions League, with a quarter-final tie against Real Madrid to come.

Potter’s five-year contract, meanwhile, was worth around £12m-a-year, £60m in total but he will not receive the remainder in full either.

The club’s co-controlling owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali said: ‘On behalf of everyone at the club, we want to thank Graham sincerely for his contribution to Chelsea.

‘We have the highest degree of respect for Graham as a coach and as a person. He has always conducted himself with professionalism and integrity and we are all disappointed in this outcome.’