Just In: Chelsea Appoints Mauricio Pochettino As New Manager

By Frank Kamuntu

Chelsea have confirmed the appointment of Mauricio Pochettino as their new manager on a two-year deal until 2025. The Blues announced the Argentine’s arrival on Monday one day after a dreadful 2022-23 Premier League campaign was brought to an end with a 12th-placed finish.

Pochettino, 51, takes up office at Stamford Bridge at the start of July and arrives after stints with Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea’s London rivals Tottenham Hotspur. The two-time UEFA Champions League winners have an option to extend the South American’s stay by an additional year.

“The sporting team conducted a diligent and thoughtful process that the board is proud of,” said owners Todd Boehly, Behdad Eghbali, Jose E. Feliciano, Mark Walter and Hansjorg Wyss in an official club statement.

“We are delighted that Mauricio will be joining Chelsea. Mauricio is a world-class coach with an outstanding track record. We are all looking forward to having him on board.”

Chelsea state that Pochettino was their leading candidate and the only manager who was entered into serious talks with by the club. The man from Murphy, who has also managed Southampton and Espanyol, arrives off the back of the club’s lowest Premier League finish in over 25 years.

Chelsea Football Club is pleased to announce Mauricio Pochettino as the club’s new head coach!

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) May 29, 2023

“Mauricio’s experience, standards of excellence, leadership qualities and character will serve Chelsea Football Club well as we move forward,” added sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Lawrence Stewart. “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.

Chelsea started 2022-23 under Thomas Tuchel, replaced the German 2021 UEFA Champions League winner with Graham Potter, and later appointed Frank Lampard until the end of term. Pochettino will be Chelsea’s sixth managerial appointment in five years and will be tasked with an immediate return to European competition as well an improvement on third round domestic cup exits.

Beaten Champions League semifinalists Real Madrid saw the Blues off in the quarterfinals which was their final hope of remaining in continental competition. The Argentine also inherits a bloated squad which he will need to trim in order for the situation to be more manageable after a disorganized transfer market assault since last year’s takeover, spending over $600 million on players during the last two transfer windows.

Pochettino won three domestic titles with PSG in France which ended scrutiny of his lack of silverware up until that point of his career. However, the French champions were beaten to the 2021 Ligue 1 title by his successor Christophe Galtier’s Lille OSC side although he did enjoy initial good performances in the Champions League — albeit not up to his 2019 UCL final best with Spurs.

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