Sevilla managerJorge Sampaoli has moved tocool his side'sinterest in out of favourChelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas.
Fabregas has been unable to dislodge either N'Golo Kante or Nemanja Matic in the Blues' central midfield, with the pair impressing in Antonio Conte's new system in recent weeks. The 29-year-oldstarted the 3-0 defeat at Arsenal in September, before being hauled off around the hour mark and hasn't featured since.
Transfer speculation has surrounded the former Barcelona playmakersince the summer, but one destination that now seems unlikely is La Liga club Sevilla, with manager Jorge Sampaoli ruling out a move.
"I know he's an important player, but I'm not thinking about him," Sampaoli told theDaily Mirror.
"He's very intelligent and it's clear he's a player any coach would love to have.But it hasn't crossed my mind that he could be here."
"We're linked with players day in, day out. We value the squad that we have here highly and I'm not thinking about any more than that."
MOST ASSISTS IN #PL HISTORY
162 - Ryan Giggs
102 - Frank Lampard
100 - Wayne Rooney
96 - Cesc Fabregas
94 - Dennis Bergkamp pic.twitter.com/dCgN7e2XsB
Fabregas came through the ranksat the Nou Camp before joining Arsenal as a 16-year-old. The World Cup winner thenreturned to Barcelona in 2011, before seeking a move to Stamford Bridge in 2014.
While Fabregas'future is likely to beaway from west London, a return to his nativeSpain in the form of Sevilla looks unlikely.
The Premier League winnerhas suffered with injury problems this season, most notably a thigh issue, but had looked set to push the likes of Kante and Matic close for first-team opportunities at the beginning of the season.
The Spaniard made animpressive cameo appearanceagainst Watford, before scoring twice against Leicester in the EFL Cup, but hasn't appeared since Conte's change of system in September.