Rafael Benitez is reportedly out of the running for the West Ham United job because it would cost the Hammers £20m.
The 59-year-old has been in charge at Dalian Yifang since July, moving across after a relatively successful, if frustrating, spell at Newcastle United.
The Hammers have been long-time admirers of the Spaniard and they came close to appointing him in 2015 before he moved to Real Madrid.
Benitez had emerged as a leading contender to potentially replace Manuel Pellegrini at the Olympic Stadium but the Daily Mail reports that the cost of buying him out of his contract is in the region of £20m.
Such a high fee is also likely to dissuade Arsenal, who were thought to be considering the former Liverpool boss as a candidate to replace Unai Emery.
West Ham are currently 13th in the Premier League table and their win over Chelsea at the weekend was their first league victory in eight games.
