Bayern Munich have approached Julen Lopetegui in their prolonged search for a new coach, Germany broadcaster Sky reported on Saturday.
The Bild newspaper also said the Spaniard was now on Bayern's shortlist after Bayer Leverkusen's Xabi Alonso, Germany's Julian Nagelsmann and Austria's Ralf Rangnick all turned the record German champions down.
The 57-year-old most recently coached English Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers, but resigned in August. He has been strongly linked in the English press with West Ham United.
Lopetegui has previously coached the Spanish national team, Real Madrid and Sevilla, among others, but has never stayed long in a job. Bayern have only appointed German speakers since 2017 and Lopetegui is not fluent.
Bild said German Roger Schmidt, the Benfica coach, was also an option but he told reporters: "It's clear to me that I'm staying with Benfica until 2026. That's what I want. That's why I've signed a new contract."
The 57-year-old added: "I'm not on the market. I have a job at Benfica."
Bayern need a coach because of a previous agreement that Thomas Tuchel would leave at the end of the season, having surrendered the Bundesliga title to Leverkusen for the first time in 12 years. Many Bayern fans would like Tuchel to now stay but a recent spat with honorary president Uli Hoeneß makes that unlikely.
Former Bayern technical director Michael Reschke said he does not understand "all the excitement. It's not the end of the world that Bayern haven't found a coach yet," he told Sport1. "Everyone would be well advised to simply trust (sporting directors) Max Eberl and Christoph Freund."
Former Bayern goalkeeper Jean-Marie Pfaff has suggested an interim solution where former Bayern coach Hansi Flick, who won the treble with the club in 2020, returns for one season.
He fell out with boardroom figures when quitting in 2021 to take the Germany job, but was fired as national coach and it is unclear if he would be welcome back in Munich.
"Hansi Flick, who is currently out of a job, could take over for a year. The advantage of this solution would be that Eberl could take his time to look for a candidate to take over in 2025," Pfaff told the Münchner Abendzeitung.
Jürgen Klopp is taking at least a year's break when he leaves Liverpool at the end of the season. However, his previous history with Borussia Dortmund makes it unlikely he would want to coach Bayern.
