Exclusive: Crewe Alexandra take fresh Lee Bell action after Burton Albion situation | OneFootball

Crewe have moved to try and tie Bell down to a new contract, after he decided against making a move to the Pirelli Stadium.

Crewe Alexandra have opened talks with manager Lee Bell regarding a new contract after seeing him opt against a move to Burton Albion, Football League World understands.

Bell, 41, had been in contention to take the top job at the Pirelli Stadium, with the Brewers on the prowl for a new boss following the sacking of Mark Robinson, who struggled during the early stages of the 2024/25 campaign.

He had even held talks regarding a potential move to the League One side, but decided against taking the role in the end, which has left Burton in limbo as they look to appoint a permanent boss and drag themselves out of the relegation zone.

Lee Bell's tenure at Crewe Alexandra

Bell arrived at Crewe in December 2022, and has been a real success since then.

Managing to steady the ship during the 2022/23 campaign, he was then able to guide his side to the League Two play-off final back in May.

Following a penalty shootout win against Doncaster Rovers in the semi-final, they were one game away from securing a place in League One, but lost out to Crawley Town at Wembley in the end.

They will be looking to make up for that by winning automatic promotion at the end of this term.

They are certainly in contention for a top-three place at this point - and Bell could be key in guiding them to the third tier.

And in an attempt to retain him for the long term, FLW understands Crewe have opened talks to try and extend his stay at the Mornflake Stadium.

Crewe Alexandra have made a shrewd move to open contract talks with Lee Bell

Bell was also linked with the Carlisle United job earlier this season.

This reinforces the need for him to be tied down to a new deal.

Not only would it boost Crewe's chances of retaining him in the future, but it may also provide some stability.

That can only help the fourth-tier club in their promotion quest, so if they can get him to sign up to fresh terms, it would be a massive plus.

Showing consistently that he can get results, it's no surprise that Crewe value him so highly, but whether the manager is prepared to sign a new deal remains to be seen.