Mauricio Pochettino has emerged as a leading candidate for the Chelsea managerial job this summer and his potential appointment would be significant at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues slumped to a two-goal loss at home to Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-final second leg on Tuesday. It came just six days after they were comprehensively defeated by the same scoreline in the Spanish capital, as their dire season looks set to end with a whimper.
Frank Lampard is interim coach at Stamford Bridge but has set a new club record by becoming the first manager to lose each of his opening four matches in the hotseat. The Blues are looking for a permanent appointment this summer, having fired both Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter this campaign.
Pochettino, alongside Julian Nagelsmann, are thought to be the two outstanding candidates for the Blues. Sporting CP boss Ruben Amorim and former Barcelona boss Luis Enrique are no longer among the favourites for the position, as outlined by the Telegraph.
Pochettino ticks a lot of boxes for the Blues. Following the sacking of Tuchel earlier this season, The Athletic reported that Blues owner Todd Boehly had instructed the German coach to play a 4-4-3 formation – which had an extra player. While Chelsea deny this version of events, what appears to be certain is that the American wants his side to play in a 4-3-3 setup.
This was the approach that Pochettino adopted at PSG, having preferred a 4-2-3-1 system at Tottenham. His new approach allowed him to crowbar Lionel Messi into an attack already featuring Kylian Mbappe and Neymar. It showed he is malleable to changing his setup depending on his circumstances – although the French club’s success using this formation is up for debate.
Have Your Say! Would Pochettino be the best appointment for Chelsea? Tell us what you think here.
Pochettino does not appear to be overly wedded to one particular formation, with the style of play carrying greater weight. Pochettino has said of his insistence on his team’s pressing: “Where did I get the idea we had to (press)? It's about your personality, who you are.”
The Argentine added: “You show on the pitch who you are. If you are brave in your life, you cannot behave in a different way on the pitch. I don't understand how to play in a different way. Always, be brave. I like to be brave.”
But his agreement with Boehly – who has focused Chelsea’s recruitment on signing young players. There are 16 players in the Blues first team squad who are aged 24 or younger, including six of the club’s January arrivals. This is precisely the age profile of player with which Pochettino has thrived.
In his first Spurs team, Harry Kane, Dele Alli, Eric Dier, Ben Davies and Nabil Bentaleb were all aged 22 or under, while Erik Lamela and Christian Eriksen were 23, Ryan Mason 24 and full-backs Kyle Walker and Danny Rose were both 25.
Previous to that, the young group of James Ward-Prowse, Luke Shaw, Adam Lallana, Calum Chambers, Jack Cork and Nathaniel Clyne were all prominent in his Southampton side.
“I’m not afraid to play them,” Pochettino said of his focus on youth. “If a player deserves to play, if they are 17, 18, 19 or 20 it’s the same for us, if they deserve to play and show character and maturity to be given the responsibility. But for that, you need to build the player.”
One of those players who fall into that bracket is Mason Mount, whose contract at Stamford Bridge expires in the summer of 2024. He is the ideal player who could thrive under Pochettino, with his versatility key – he can play across any number of attacking positions, primarily in a central role or an advanced position in a three-man midfield, or as a wide forward in a front trio.
Pochettino was previously tipped as a long-term successor to Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United, but that opportunity appears to have passed – with Erik ten Hag thriving at Old Trafford. Yet those qualities are what Chelsea sought with Potter; a long-term manager who could stay for years.
Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville’s comments on Sky Sports, when Pochettino was still at PSG, are applicable to Chelsea’s vision of themselves and their desire for long-term managerial stability.
Neville said: "I think Mauricio Pochettino – although he’d never say it – he’d leave to come to Man United on a five-year deal tomorrow. He’d look at that group of players, he’d look at the club and he’d realise he’d probably be able to achieve more than he wants at Man United in terms of a project.
"At PSG you are on season by season. ‘You’ve got to win the Champions League or you’re out’ type of model. I don’t think that suits Pochettino.
"I think he would absolutely come to Man Utd on a five-year deal, with backing behind him. How he’d fit in with the current coaches who are still there and left, I’m not sure.
"Manchester United have to make sure they get the next one right. Even if that means being patient for six months to wait for managers to become available at the end of the season."
