Pochettino Rolls the Dice: Transfer Risk Amplifies Chelsea’s Internal Strife
There are indications that Chelsea has begun to assign blame.
It didn’t take much to figure out from Mauricio Pochettino’s comments on Sunday that he doesn’t think their £1 billion team is good enough.
He made it rather evident that the club’s actual standing and expectations for it in the standings differ significantly. The first four months of the season, according to him, have been a “reality check,” with Chelsea having to face the fact that they are a mid-table squad.
“After four or five months and 16 Premier League games, it is [time to] assess,” Blues manager Mauricio Pochettino declared following yet another clumsy performance and a 2-0 loss that drops them to 12th. I am not suggesting that we should request more or fewer players, but it is [time] to determine whether perception and reality line up.
“If reality is here (low) and expectation is here (high), something is lacking in the Centre. Perhaps we should make our reality better.
Pochettino ran the danger of angering his superiors, and it’s unclear how the Stamford Bridge administration will take his remarks.
To put it plainly, he has essentially questioned the Chelsea team and demanded that the team support him by adding more new players or changing their goals.
Clearly, despite the fact that owners Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital have spent almost £1 billion on new players, he no longer thinks he can get this team into the Champions League.
Even though Chelsea controlled 72% of the possession in their match against Everton, they were ultimately outmatched and undone by defensive errors. Chelsea also failed to score from their 16 attempts on goal.
While the loss puts the Blues 14 points adrift of the top four, it was not as terrible as their losses to Manchester United and Newcastle. Pochettino needs to examine his own failings because he is not beyond criticism.
Since taking over, he’s had a 31.25 victory % in the League, which is marginally lower than Graham Potter’s 31.8 figure prior to his firing in April.
When natural left-backs have been available, players like Levi Colwill have been used out of position; Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo have struggled most of the season and aren’t developing a rapport; and Mykhailo Mudryk appears talented but unfocused and cut off from his teammates. Title contenders Manchester City, Liverpool, and Arsenal all desired to recruit those four players, but they aren’t doing well at Chelsea.
The Blues have surrendered 26 goals in 16 games, which is tied for the most goals given up by any team at this point in the Premier League season. They have also failed to keep a clean sheet in nine games.
Since many of their issues predate Pochettino, he will believe that his remarks are justified. “There was a lot of expectation,” he stated on Sunday.
“Pochettino has risked upsetting his bosses, and it remains to be seen how his comments will go down with the Stamford Bridge hierarchy”
“Winning the league is always the goal for Chelsea, but reality sets in later. Sometimes a reality check is beneficial. We must battle. We currently live in a mid-table reality.
Under the direction of co-sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley, Chelsea assembled a youthful roster with an average age of roughly 23 during the most recent transfer window. The only players remaining from the 2021 Champions League-winning team are Ben Chilwell and veteran Thiago Silva, as well as the injured pair, Reece James.
Despite an overhaul by the new owners in every department, including the fitness, medical, and sports science departments, injury issues have dogged the Boehly-Clearlake project.
In a new blow to Chelsea, who are now closer to the bottom three than the top four and would be below Everton if it weren’t for their 10-point deduction, James is expected to miss more time due to hamstring injuries.