Frank Lampard has only been in charge at Chelsea for four games so far but the former Blues midfielder has seen his side lose every one of those matches and there's been a common theme.
Lampard has spoken in-depth about the "lack of belief" that's engraved into the Chelsea squad and their confidence being at a seemingly all-time low. It's understandable. Chelsea have had such a torrid season and despite spending over £500million in the last two transfer windows, the performances and results on the pitch have been woeful for the most part.
"There was a lot there for us," Lampard, who is in interim charge of Chelsea until the end of the season, said after the away defeat to Real Madrid earlier in the month. "As good as they are, offensively such a strong team, but in terms of us when we had the ball, there's a little bit of a lack of belief. I think our players need to understand how good they are."
READ MORE: Mauricio Pochettino to Chelsea: Crucial Monday talks, players' stance, deal a long time coming
A lot of Chelsea supporters seemed to agree with those words from Lampard, especially the last bit about the lack of belief. There's no doubt the club have some world-class, or potentially world-class, players in their ranks but what we've seen this season would not suggest that is the case. It's like they need a fresh start and that fresh start could come in the form of Mauricio Pochettino.
football.london understands the Argentine is now the clear front-runner for the vacant manager's role at Stamford Bridge. Talks on Monday proved pivotal to Chelsea's continued search for a new permanent head coach to succeed Graham Potter who was sacked at the start of April.
Both parties are confident and hopeful that a deal for Pochettino to return to London can be completed. Although it's understood the 51-year-old wouldn't take charge of the team until the summer, should everything be completed as expected.
Pochettino proved during his four-year spell at Tottenham what a superb manager he is. He led Spurs to a Champions League final, where they were beaten 2-0 by Liverpool in 2019, just months before he was surprisingly sacked as manager by the ruthless Daniel Levy.
Prior to managing Tottenham, Pochettino impressed down on the south coast with Southampton – with Spurs and the Saints, to date, his only managerial stints in the Premier League. Plenty can be taken away from these two spells, but one thing that particularly stands out is his man-management style which has been lauded plenty by former players and colleagues.
Pochettino himself has detailed his style, how he gets the best out of players and why man-management, especially nowadays, is absolutely imperative to getting maximum results from the players. Speaking in an interview with Sky Sports in 2019, Pochettino's words make for fascinating viewing for excited Chelsea supporters.
"On the pitch is less important," the Argentine said. "I think it is most important outside the pitch, the man-management. Football is changing, moving forward. Today the kids are different to 20 years ago. I need to understand that.
"[Man-management] is so important because players only think about what you've talked about to them. I need to be aware of 25 players and what we've talked about, remember every single situation. The most important thing for each player is to have a way of talking to us, one way.
"Remembering what you've said, it is important for your relationship. With players, staff, the board, the media, everyone. It is a skill we need to have as coaching staff to be successful."
He added: "All the things that happened outside the pitch impacts the performance on the pitch. If you think about how much time they spend on the pitch, it's a minimum.
"Most of the time they are outside with their family, the environment, their friends, agents, companies that advise players, and that is why it is important how you care about yourself off the pitch. That has become more important in the last few years."
Earlier in the same year, Pochettino did an interview with JOE and spoke even more about his unique man-management style. "Of course, we want to win, but always I think you have to respect the people you have in front of you," the Argentine explained.
"The way that we choose to work with the players, it is to touch them inside. It's more than just focusing on the professional side. If you touch the person inside, you automatically create the room to improve them as a player.
"I am open, I am here for them all. We told the players from the start, 'There is no limit to how close you can be with me – it's up to you to choose'.
"If you're not playing tomorrow, I know the day after that you're going to be upset. I'm going to give you your own space. I'm not going to put my arm around you and say, 'You are going to play next time, don't worry'. The player would think: 'F*** off, I don't need this'. After three or so days, I can check how they are doing and if they say they are disappointed, I'll say 'show me more'.
"I never justify my decisions, but if a player comes to me asking why he didn't start, I'll be honest with him and tell him what he needs to work on. You need to treat them with respect and understand their emotions in different situations – it is about them, not you.
"It is true that at the start of every season – okay, for the last two seasons we haven't had many new faces in the squad – that you refresh this message. The first meeting is always about discussing the two different sides: one is the human side, the other is professional. On the first, everyone is all the same to me. We help everyone: whether you play a little, all the time, whether you are 17 or 30, you will always be treated the same and our door is always open.
"On the other side, I have to take decisions. Do we want to play with one striker, or no striker? These decisions are based on many information-based factors and you can't mix the first side with the second one. The professional choice is never personal and it is important that no one takes it that way.
"The point that you start to mix to everything and think, 'Oh, I'm not playing because the gaffer doesn't like me' – no, no, no, no. If you're not playing, it's because we think someone is better suited for the game based on our assessments. Yes, we can be wrong because no one is right all the time, but it is about strategy, nothing else."
READ NEXT:
Mauricio Pochettino to Chelsea truth revealed as Julian Nagelsmann alternative search continues
Next Chelsea manager: Zinedine Zidane makes major decision on future after Stamford Bridge links
Next Chelsea manager: Players' stance on Mauricio Pochettino revealed amid positive talks
Rio Ferdinand raises Mauricio Pochettino Tottenham return question amid Chelsea manager decision
Mauricio Pochettino already has new Chelsea answer to Harry Kane and it's not Romelu Lukaku
