The costly compensation fee Portsmouth might have been expected to pay if interest in Chelsea coach had progressed

But it seems that interest would have come at a hefty price if the Chelsea coach had welcomed the Blues’ advances.

Barry stands on the brink of moving to Bayern Munich, who are now managed by his former Stamford Bridge boss Thomas Tuchel.

However, the 36-year-old’s services won’t come cheap, with news emerging that a £1m compensation package has been agreed between the German giants and Chelsea.

That’s small change for both, especially when you consider the Londoners spent £600m on new players over the past two transfer windows.

But for Pompey, that’s an eye-watering amount for a manager that, no doubt, would have proven a stumbling block if negotiations that got to a serious stage.

The News understands Barry was approached by Blues sporting director Rich Hughes and asked to apply for Cowley’s former job.

It’s understood the former Yeovil and Fleetwood midfielder was flattered by the Fratton Park side’s interest. But he remained in west London Blues, having recently also turned down Huddersfield.

Now he’s on the verge of a reunion with Tuchel – a move that had reportedly been on hold due to both clubs’ involvement in the Champions League up until this week.

The Blues, of course, replaced Cowley with John Mousinho, who has collected 34 points from his 20 league games in charge to date.