Mauricio Pochettino’s Chelsea job ‘on the line’ against Leeds

Highlights

• Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino is at risk of being axed if his side are knocked out of the FA Cup by Championship promotion chasers Leeds United.
• The Argentine tactician is under increasing pressure after the Blues lost the Carabao Cup final to an inexperienced Liverpool side last weekend.
• Respected journalist Dean Jones believes that Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly will have already identified potential successors to Pochettino.

Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino’s ‘job is going to be on the line’ when Leeds United head to Stamford Bridge for a FA Cup fifth round tie on Wednesday, and journalist Dean Jones has told GIVEMESPORT that co-owner Todd Boehly ‘will have names in mind’ as he mulls over whether to make a change in the dugout.

The Blues failed to take advantage of the opportunity to secure silverware when a 118th minute header from Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk resulted in them missing out on Carabao Cup glory at Wembley last weekend and, in the process, setting an unwanted record by suffering a sixth consecutive domestic cup final defeat.

Boehly has not been afraid to splash the cash since completing a takeover of Chelsea in May 2022, having spent more than £1billion on reinforcements in various transfer windows, and the latest setback ahead of a challenging FA Cup tie against Championship promotion chasers Leeds has led to the pressure ramping up on Pochettino.

Pochettino desperate to save job at Stamford Bridge

Pochettino has pleaded for the Chelsea hierarchy to remain patient and give him the chance to revive their season, according to The Guardian, while he believes progress has been made on the pitch despite his side being in the bottom half of the Premier League and at serious risk of missing out on the European qualification places.

The report suggests that the Carabao Cup final defeat led to the Argentine tactician receiving a supportive text message from Boehly, who forked out £4.25billion in order to end Roman Abramovich’s trophy-laden reign in west London, and he also met with fellow co-owner Behdad Eghbali to discuss the extra-time loss.

But it is understood that Chelsea have retained an interest in Sporting head coach Ruben Amorim, who has a better points-per-game ratio in league outings in his current surroundings than Pochettino has recorded at Chelsea, and key figures working behind the scenes have started looking at potential candidates to move into the Stamford Bridge hot-seat.

Respected reporter Jones recently told GIVEMESPORT that Boehly could seriously consider sacking Pochettino if second tier Leeds knock Chelsea out of the FA Cup on Wednesday as it would result in hopes of securing silverware being over with months of the campaign still to be played.

The former Tottenham Hotspur chief has admitted that he is running out of time to win trophies and was forced to hit back at Sky Sports co-commentator Gary Neville after the Manchester United legend described his charges as the ‘blue billion-pound bottle jobs’ as they failed to take the initiative against a Liverpool side lacking first-team experience in extra-time of the Carabao Cup final.

Despite dominating the final stages of the second half at Wembley last weekend, Pochettino has conceded that Chelsea were hoping to take Jurgen Klopp’s side to penalties after the clash was extended by another 30 minutes, but van Dijk’s late header resulted in the Merseyside giants ensuring the encounter would not be decided from 12 yards.

Dean Jones – Pochettino at risk of being axed if Chelsea lose to Leeds

Jones believes that Leeds will head to west London full of confidence as they are in the hunt for an immediate return to the Premier League, thanks to an impressive run of form, and they are aware that Chelsea will be tired after their Carabao Cup final went to extra-time.

The reputable journalist has refused to rule out the possibility of Boehly already knowing his preferred candidate to succeed Pochettino, while the South American could be sacked if the Blues are beaten by Daniel Farke’s charges with a place in the FA Cup quarter-finals at stake.

Jones told GIVEMESPORT:

“They will be feeling exhausted because they’ve just gone through 120 minutes, but they are about to face an FA Cup game against a Leeds team who are feeling on top of the world right now.

“Leeds will arrive at Stamford Bridge with thousands of fans, and they will make more noise than you can imagine. That’s going to be really difficult for Chelsea to get through.

“If Pochettino loses against Leeds, his job is going to be on the line, and you have to consider that Chelsea will have names in mind for who would be coming in for him.”

Quartet facing uncertain future amid spending breach fears

Chelsea’s Premier League rivals are confident that they will need to make major sales before June 30 in order to avoid the threat of breaching profit and sustainability rules, according to the Telegraph, which has led to a quartet going into the final months of the campaign with significant doubt hanging over their respective futures.

The report suggests that the Blues are hoping to sell Trevoh Chalobah and Armando Broja, who is already spending time away from Stamford Bridge after joining Fulham in a loan switch worth up to £4million during the final minutes of the winter window, while Conor Gallagher and Marc Cucurella may be offloaded as Boehly aims to make major changes to the playing squad.

Mason Mount’s £60million switch to Manchester United last summer showed that Chelsea are willing to cash in on academy graduates as it allows them to make a pure profit, which would boost their chances of falling in line with strict spending guidelines.

Chalobah, Broja and Gallagher came through the Blues’ youth ranks, and reliable journalist Ben Jacobs recently told GIVEMESPORT that London rivals Tottenham Hotspur are likely to up the ante in their pursuit of the latter ahead of the 2024/25 campaign after also showing interest during the early stages of the year.

Unlike his three teammates, Spanish left-back Cucurella would not be sold for pure profit as Chelsea forked out £60million in order to lure him away from Brighton & Hove Albion in August 2022, but he has struggled to rediscover the form he enjoyed at the Amex Stadium since heading to the capital.

All statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt