Chelsea’s decision-makers have explained why they decided to hire Mauricio Pochettino as their new manager.
The former Tottenham boss, 51, was finally announced as Graham Potter’s long-term successor at Stamford Bridge on Monday following weeks of speculation and a dire spell under interim boss Frank Lampard, signing an initial two-year contract that includes the option for a further 12 months.
Pochettino, out of work since being sacked by Paris Saint-Germain last summer and not considered for a reunion with managerless Tottenham, will be joined at Chelsea by a familiar backroom staff that includes assistant Jesus Perez, first-team coach Miguel d’Agostino, goalkeeping coach Toni Jimenez and son Sebastiano Pochettino, a sports scientist.
He will officially start work in west London on July 1, tasked with immediately lifting the fortunes of a club that have just laboured horribly to a 12th-placed finish in the Premier League - their lowest since 1994 - despite around £600million being lavished on new players during the first year under the ownership of Todd Boehly and Clearlake.
Pochettino will have a number of important decisions to make during the early stages of his reign, working closely with co-sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley on transfer strategy.
Chelsea must also trim their bloated squad considerably and have a cut-off point of June 30 for those sales to be included in their financial accounts for the 2022-23 season.
There is a huge amount of work to be done to transform the Blues back into contenders, though there is evidently huge confidence among the Chelsea hierachy that they have the right man for the job.
Standard Sport understands that Pochettino was Chelsea’s first-choice candidate from early on in the hiring process, the only person they ever entered into serious discussions with as he indicated a happiness with the club’s current structure and working closely with Winstanley and Stuart.
During Monday’s official announcement, the co-sporting directors said: “Mauricio’s experience, standards of excellence, leadership qualities and character will serve Chelsea Football Club well as we move forward.
“He is a winning coach, who has worked at the highest levels, in multiple leagues and languages. His ethos, tactical approach and commitment to development all made him the exceptional candidate.”
Those opinions were shared by Chelsea co-owners Todd Boehly, Behdad Eghbali, Jose E Feliciano, Mark Walter and Hansjorg Wyss, who were delighted that their robust hiring process produced such an oustanding candidate.
“The sporting team conducted a diligent and thoughtful process that the Board is proud of. We are delighted that Mauricio will be joining Chelsea,” they said. “Mauricio is a world-class coach with an outstanding track record. We are all looking forward to having him on board.”
