Mauricio Pochettino’s exit from Chelsea is reportedly imminent, according to reports that the Argentinean manager’s only chance of saving his job is one thing. Todd Boehly, a co-owner of the Blues, is reportedly starting to show signs of restlessness.
The American hired Pochettino during the summer after the team had previously gone through several managers under their leadership. Thomas Tuchel promptly resigned shortly after their arrival, but Chelsea’s performance took a turn for the worse, something that neither interim manager Frank Lampard nor chosen one Graham Potter were able to reverse.
As a result, the Blues ultimately finished the Premier League in a depressing 12th place, 45 points behind champion Manchester City.
With the addition of Pochettino—who had a stellar reputation from his time at PSG and Tottenham—along with another large transfer expenditure, Chelsea’s chances of finishing in the top four and possibly winning the championship were boosted.
Nevertheless, Pochettino has had little success thus far this season as the team struggles with consistency and he is unable to maximize the potential of his highly-priced team.
Additionally, it’s been said that Pochettino is already on borrowed time because a notable board member is sick of seeing the same mistakes repeated, even though the Blues are currently in ninth place.
The Blues have advanced to the FA Cup’s fourth round, where they will take on Aston Villa, and they are still alive in the Carabao Cup, where they must overcome a 1-0 deficit against Championship Middlesbrough in the second leg of their semi-final match.
Pochettino fired: Chelsea manager informed he faces extreme pressure
But one former Blues player is adamant that Boehly needs to start pressuring Pochettino to immediately improve their Premier League performance.
Furthermore, John Obi Mikel—who is renowned for his bluntness—thinks that Pochettino’s results should arrive “now is the time.”
“Now that we’ve given them time. Half a year has passed. It’s time to prevail now. Time does not exist in Chelsea. Our motto is ‘You have to win,'” Obi Mikel stated to Sky Sports during The Best FIFA Football Awards in London.
“Roman gets you out the door and gets someone else if you don’t win. Thus, in my opinion, the new owner should adopt the mindset that “you have to win.” What’s the point of being at Chelsea if you can’t win?
“I’m done making excuses about trying to review. We must now strive to compete, play better, win games, and develop. Now, hit it on the head for this year. We have to be up there next year. We must continue to construct the team. We have spent a lot of money, as everyone claims.
“We have a lot of talented players, but they need time to develop individually and as a unit. Poch is, in my opinion, an excellent manager. With younger players as well as the team, he performs incredibly well. We require a goal-scoring striker and point guard.
Coach believes his Chelsea team is making progress.
Cole Palmer’s penalty gave the Blues a 1-0 victory over their next opponents, Fulham. Despite having to withstand a bit of an attack from the Cottagers, Pochettino thinks the victory indicates Chelsea is moving in the right direction.
For the team and the way we are developing throughout this process, it is crucial. Because we are Chelsea, we must have confidence, trust, and the ability to take criticism after we lose to Middlesbrough, said Pochettino.
“That is a component of our reality and the process. The most crucial factor is that we are resilient and aware of the best course of action. I was really pleased with the first half hour of the second half, and the players today displayed a high level of professionalism.
“I believe that is how we should use our freedom, and we had a great connection.” The way this young team played defense in the final fifteen minutes was encouraging. We were squabbling and exerting every effort to hold onto the three points.
“I think we had 30 minutes of really good football, and we should have scored one or two more goals to end the game.” We played excellent defense, and in the end, I believe it was beneficial for us to suffer a little bit because this kind of game, in my opinion, helps us develop and gain confidence.
The Blues will play again on Tuesday against Boro in an attempt to overcome that deficit. On Friday night, they will play Villa in a quick turnaround to continue their cup journey.
