Chelsea target Brighton's recruitment head 15 months after hiring their last one

15 February 2024 , 13:20

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Todd Boehly triggered a backroom overhaul after his Chelsea arrival (Image: Getty Images)

Chelsea are set to raid Brighton once again as they look to appoint the Seagulls' head of recruitment, just 15 months on from landing his predecessor at the Amex.

The Telegraph report the Blues have made an offer to former Wigan boss Paul Jewell's son, Sam, who currently holds the role on the south coast. He was appointed to the position when Paul Winstanley, a co-sporting director at Stamford Bridge, joined Chelsea in November 2022.

The west London side have regularly poached staff from the Sussex outfit having appointed the likes of Graham Potter, Kyle Macaulay and Ben Roberts to roles during the tenure of Todd Boehly and Clearklake Capital, in addition to signing Marc Cucurella and Moises Caicedo. Jewell took over from Winstanley in February 2023 having held the role on an interim basis following the latter's departure.

The report suggests Chelsea would like to appoint Jewell to a global scouting role that would take charge of negotiations for clubs under the BlueCo umbrella. The Brighton chief has previously held the position of chief scout at Swindon Town and advanced at the Amex Stadium from under-21 recruitment manager in 2016 to emerging talent scouting manager before landing the role of head of recruitment.

The move appears to have been prompted by Manchester United's expected approach for Newcastle United sporting director Dan Ashworth. The 52-year-old worked alongside Jewell at Brighton and is said to be interested in bringing his colleague to Old Trafford should he complete the move.

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Jewell spoke in the summer about the importance of planning to ensure the departures of Ashworth and Winstanley were not felt in a significant way. He also noted he gained experience from the faith placed in him by the latter.

Sam Jewell is the son of former Wigan and Derby boss Paul Jewell (Clive Brunskill)

Jewell said: "We’re very lucky at Brighton because our succession planning means there is very little upheaval when people do move on. Departures are part and parcel of football, and while it was sad to see two really good people leave us, it has opened doors to others, including me. Following Paul’s departure, I took on the head of recruitment role on an interim basis and it was very much business as usual."

He added: "There’s nothing in the job that I hadn’t done before, to be honest. I was lucky in the fact that Paul Winstanley trusted me a lot with many elements of the role, so I just got on with what I needed to do."

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Scott Trotter