Brought in to supplant the departing Ronald Koeman, Claude Puel’s time at Southampton hasn’t been ideal.
Apart from taking the Saints to a League Cup final, which they lost 3-2 to Manchester United, the French manager oversaw a season some believe was disapointing, finishing 23 points off a Europa League spot in the Premier League.
This has since caused rumours to emerge the former Nice manager could see his contract terminated early this summer, only for him to take over at Saint-Etienne, who are themselves looking for a replacement for their former man Christophe Galtier.
However, it appears Puel has absolutely no interest in returning to Ligue 1, at least not with Saint-Etienne, as France Bleu are reporting.
The French radio station explain that even if he were to be let go by Southampton in the coming weeks, the 55-year-old would not accept the job offer from Les Verts.
Talks were apparently held recently between the Ligue 1 side and his lawyer, but the final answer remains the same as it was in May: “No”.
Perhaps Puel sees himself taking a sabbatical if he’s sacked? That’s what all the cool managers are doing nowadays.
