CHELSEA
Mauricio Pochettino announced as new Chelsea head coach
The former Tottenham Hotspur manager had been out of work for a year and has opted for a return to the Premier League.
Mauricio Pochettino has been officially announced as Chelsea head coach. The former Tottenham Hotspur boss had been the front-runner for some time and has now penned an initial two-year deal with an option of a further year.
Pochettino, who first established himself as an elite manager when he led Chelsea’s London rivals Tottenham to the Champions League final in 2019, left Paris Saint-Germain last summer and has been out of work ever since.
The Argentine will replace interim boss Frank Lampard at Chelsea and becomes the fourth manager of a turbulent first year under the club’s new owners. The 51-year-old topped a shortlist that is thought to have included the likes of Luis Enrique and Julian Nagelsmann.
In a statement Chelsea’s co-sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley described Pochettino as an “exceptional candidate.”
“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.”
Will Pochettino be a success at Chelsea?
Pochettino’s announcement as head coach had been expected for weeks, but the club opted not to install him on the touchline until the end of the season. Chelsea have endured a torrid season on the pitch, slumping to a mid-table finish and failing to get the most of the £600 million of talent that has been purchased over the past 12 months.
The new boss is thought to have been in contact with interim manager Frank Lampard in recent weeks as he looks to whittle down the Blues’ bloated but talented squad.
He has a busy summer ahead to bring some direction to a club that has looked completely aimless at times this season. Since the sacking of popular former manager Thomas Tuchel early in the campaign, Chelsea have lurched between different styles under different managers.
Pochettino has been brought in on the basis of his reputation as a ‘club-builder’ at Spurs, taking them to the top table of European football. Now that he has been officially unveiled at Stamford Bridge the job at hand could be even more difficult.