If Mauricio Pochettino is to become Chelsea’s new manager he must presumably have priced in the real risk of reputational damage. Their latest offering was yet another monument to the bloated, decadent, short-term thinking that has led them to the bottom half at warp speed under Todd Boehly and may yet bring further lows. They have become a club that taint almost everyone they touch and nobody watching an incoherent, uninspired group of individuals labouring against a gutsy and united Brentford would expect that to change overnight.
Time will surely be one of Pochettino’s most pressing requirements in the event he signs a contract. Frank Lampard, like most who occupy the home dugout here, is not about to benefit from that and will depart five games from now, unless he becomes the latest caretaker manager at a Premier League club to be shown his cards early. He cannot be blamed for the shambles that continues to unfold but Chelsea had thought he might at least coax a tune from a confused, drifting squad. Instead he has overseen a run of five defeats from five and his team patently cannot wait for the season to end.
