Chelsea have identified former Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino as the ‘firm favourite’ to take the vacant hotseat at Stamford Bridge after Julian Nagelsmann pulled out of the running.
The Blues have been without a permanent manager since they fired Graham Potter in the wake of a 2-0 home defeat to Aston Villa, a result which left the west London side marooned in 11th place in the Premier League.
Club legend Frank Lampard has since returned to take interim charge, but results have got worse under the Englishman’s tenure, with four defeats out of four welcoming him back to Stamford Bridge (including a 4-0 aggregate thumping by Spanish giants Real Madrid to knock them out of the Champions League).
New owner Todd Boehly is under no rush to name a new boss, and wants to undergo a thorough process in order to avoid a repeat of the record breaking amount wasted on Potter’s arrival and subsequent sacking, but it was felt that one of the frontrunners for the job was ex-Bayern boss Julian Nagelsmann.
However, it was announced that he had pulled out of contention on Friday afternoon following a lack of clarity on where he stood, and it has since emerged that it is former Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino that is catching the eye of the Chelsea hierarchy.
The Argentine spent five years working with London rivals Tottenham from 2014-2019, taking them to second in the Premier League and a Champions League final.
As per the Athletic, he is ‘now firm favourite to become Chelsea boss’, with the Argentine ‘ticking a lot of Chelsea’s boxes’ with regards to play style, man management and transfer policy.
With Pochettino a free agent as things stand, it may be a move made sooner rather than later.
