Mauricio Pochettino Set To Become Chelsea FC’s Latest Uncomfortable Appointment

Whenever it is Mauricio Pochettino eventually becomes Chelsea FC manager one thing is certain; he is unlikely to receive the reception of his predecessor.

Frank Lampard may have only joined on an interim basis and off the back of a less-than-stellar previous stint as manager, but amongst the Blues faithful he is still adored.

For his first home game back as temporary boss against Brighton and Hove Albion, following the firing of Graham Potter, two banners were unveiled at Stamford Bridge.

‘Welcome Home Super Frank’ one said, ‘Frank Lampard’s Blue and White Army’ read the other.

Lampard’s results, however, have been anything but super after the banners were revealed Chelsea proceeded to rack up its third loss in a row.

A couple of days later a comprehensive second-leg defeat to Real Madrid confirmed Champions League elimination and, in the week which followed, it emerged Chelsea had decided on the man to replace Lampard permanently.

Given the turnover of Chelsea coaches in the past decade it’s tough to find a manager who doesn’t carry some form of baggage, but Pochettino will join the Blues with more than most.

This is a man whose name was until recently still sung adoringly by the fans of his former club and bitter rivals to the Blues; Tottenham Hotspur.

And, whilst Jose Mourinho, Andre Villas-Boas and Antonio Conte have all recently had spells on both the Spurs and Chelsea benches, Pochettino is set to become the first to cross the divide from Tottenham to West London.

The Argentinian manager has never ruled out making the switch, perhaps learning from his earlier statement that he would never manage Barcelona because of his connection to inner-city rivals Espanyol

But it will be hard for even the most charitable Spurs fans not to feel a twinge of betrayal at the sight of their former boss coaching a hated adversary.

Likewise, there will be many Chelsea fans who will be uncomfortable by the scenario, they might feel with a degree of justification it is Spurs who take their managerial cast-offs not the other way around.

Nevertheless, the move for the Argentinian coach has been widely praised in the media.

“Pochettino has to see a parallel with his appointment by Tottenham in May 2014 after his 18 months at Southampton,” wrote Daniel Hytner in The Guardian

“Back then, Spurs looked broken, scorched by Tim Sherwood’s tenure, the confidence on the floor. The squad needed a rebuild – and on a budget, too. What they needed, as Chelsea does now, was somebody to be ruthless, to move on the underachieving regulars, creating pathways from within, and to convince the mainstays.”

Such comparisons will burn for a fanbase who was celebrating winning the Champions League just two seasons ago, how can we be compared to that basketcase? They might wonder.

But, then again, having a coach who the fanbase is uncomfortable with is something Chelsea has experienced before.

Potter And Benitez

It was testament to how little Blues fans warmed to Frank Lampard’s predecessor, Graham Potter, that there was barely a whisper of discontent at his axing.

“For everyone else at the club and supporters too, at least we can move on from this episode and concentrate on trying to bring some smiles back to the Bridge this year,” fan podcaster, Ross Mooring, reflected at the time.

“He will also walk in the door with more support from the players – new and old – than Graham Potter ever had, even if that reflects badly on some given the mocking leaks after Potter’s sacking,” he added.

The reservations about Potter link to many blues fans’ unhappiness at how previous incumbent Thomas Tuchel was disposed of, the German having overseen a silverware-laden 18 months at the club.

Potter’s replacing of a Champions League-winning manager early in the campaign had echoes of the 2012/13 season when Roberto Di Matteo was fired and replaced with Rafa Benitez.

Just like Pochettino, Benitez arrived with a strong association with another rival; Liverpool.

Fans never accepted the Spanish coach and continued to protest the appointment months into his reign, singing derogatory songs and making banners mocking the manager.

“This group of fans are not doing any favors to the team, while they are wasting time singing and preparing banners,” a frustrated Benítez said at the height of the anger against him. “They have to concentrate on supporting the team.”

The Spaniard delivered a UEFA
EFA
cup before leaving Stamford Bridge, but it was not a period many remember fondly and it’s subsequently been revealed by then-club captain John Terry the friction seen on the terraces was present in the dressing room too.

“We just didn’t get on from day one personally, to be honest,” Terry said to the Sky Sports ‘Off Script show’

“Every meeting we had it was, ‘Oh we used to do this at Liverpool and we done this’. You laugh but that’s what he used to be like, ‘Just move a yard here.’

“I actually had to have a few conversations and say, ‘Gaffer, you have to forget Liverpool, you can’t keep saying ‘we’, you’re at Chelsea now, it’s not going down well with the lads.’”

Any slips like that from Pochettino will get a similar reaction, fans and players alike will be aware that while his Tottenham Hotspur side of the mid-2010s was praised for their expansive soccer the trophies being won in London were over at Stamford Bridge.