Newcastle United boss Rafa Benitez remains open to extending his contract at St James' Park despite there being less than a month remaining on his current deal.

The news from Chronicle Live just comes hours after the Spaniard was linked with the job at Chelsea.

The 59-year-old won the Europa League and finished third with the Blues in 2012/13 during a controversial stint as their interim manager.

However, while he impressed Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich during his time at Stamford Bridge, a significant number of Blues supporters never accepted the former Liverpool boss as their head coach.

Reports in Italy on Tuesday claimed that Benitez was in line to return to west London should Maurizio Sarri leave Chelsea for Juventus as expected, though sources close to the Blues played down suggestions that the Newcastle manager was about to head back to the capital.

It is understood that Benitez has not broken off contract discussions with Newcastle, although the situation further highlights the pressing need for the Magpies to finally resolve a situation which should have been sorted long before the middle of June.

Benitez's current deal expires on June 30 and, while there has been an extension on offer from United for more than three weeks, the Spaniard has so far opted against signing it as he seeks further reassurances from the Magpies.