Mauricio Pochettino will take over as the new manager of Premier League side Chelsea, one year after his departure from Paris Saint-Germain.
The Argentine coach had previously coached Tottenham Hotspur in the league and his experience is what the Blues will be counting on as they try to get over the disaster that has been the 2022/23 season.
Their sights will be set on replicating the magical 2016/17 season when they last won the Premier League. That season came after a similar season to the ongoing one in 2015/16. They ended the 2015/16 with an interim manager and the new manager, Antonio Conte, came in and turned things around to earn them another Premier League title.
The club’s new owners will be hoping some of that good fortune can trickle down to Pochettino as he prepares to take over from Frank Lampard following the completion of this season.
Chelsea fans, meanwhile, are worried about the former Espanyol manager’s fit for the club.
Pochettino spent five years in England with Spurs and while he changed their fortunes, he was unable to win anything of repute. The Argentine himself is aware of this issue and will be planning big things for his second coming to the English football top flight.
He was one of four choices for the role according to reports. After former Bayern Munich manager Julian Nagelsmann ruled himself out of the running, the club eventually decided against going with former Spain national team and Barcelona manager Luis Enrique. Then they sounded out Vincent Kompany and found out that the Belgian was not receptive to a move away from the 2022/23 EFL Championship winners.
Pochettino and Chelsea agreed to terms recently but have a few details to iron out. He will be bringing his full backroom staff with him to Stamford Bridge, including long-serving assistants Jesus Perez and Miguel D’Agostino, as well as goalkeeper coach Toni Jimenez and sport scientist son Sebastiano Pochettino.
An official announcement is expected next week, after which the former Southampton manager will be in the stands to watch a few of the team’s games as the season wraps up.
His first task as Chelsea manager will be to oversee the clear out of players surplus to requirements and to build the young core of the team.
