Opinion: Pochettino Sacked Can Chelsea Future be Decided Without Him

Despite recent improvements in form and a late push for Europe, Chelsea’s head coach will have to wait to discuss the club’s objectives.

The fate of head coach Mauricio Pochettino will be decided during Chelsea’s end-of-season assessment, which is scheduled to take place in the days after the team’s last match against Bournemouth.

At the conclusion of the season, Pochettino will be under contract for one year from Chelsea, with an option to extend for an additional year. The deal was signed in the summer of last year.

Regardless of swings in form and outcomes, Chelsea’s goal ever since appointing Pochettino has been to evaluate both his and the team’s overall performance at the conclusion of his first season.

Because of this, Pochettino has never been in danger of losing his job after a poor performance, like the 5-0 thrashing at Arsenal or the taunting he received from fans during the draw at Brentford. However, it also explains why, with three games remaining in the season, no guarantees on his future after this one have been provided.

Pochettino may not have his future solely determined by the club, as he has indicated that he would ask the owners and sports directors for clarity on matters at the conclusion of the season.

The end-of-season evaluation is anticipated to happen in the days after the Bournemouth match. It is expected to involve Pochettino, sports directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley, as well as members of the Behdad Eghbali, Todd Boehly, and Jose E. Feliciano co-ownership group.

Chelsea does not want to be in a position where the team and Pochettino have to wait weeks or months to evaluate their first season—which is anticipated to be evaluated holistically.

Pochettino has undoubtedly been buoyed by the year’s overall upward trajectory as well as recent performances and outcomes, and co-owner Boehly seemed to encourage him this week.

Impresses Boehly with recent performances

In a recent statement, Pochettino said that he had not spoken with Chelsea’s owners directly and recommended that inquiries over his future be made to them as well as to sports directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley.

Decisions about Chelsea’s European qualification will not be determined until the conclusion of the season, with three games left against Forest, Brighton, and Bournemouth.

“We’ve seen the last two and a half games…in the second half at Aston Villa [2-2 draw], Tottenham [2-0 win], and West Ham [5-0 win], where we played beautiful football,” Boehly remarked on Wednesday during a Sportico conference in Los Angeles.It flowed so naturally and followed our plan precisely. From the moment we started from the rear, it was well-organized and we got a lot of photos. You could really start to see the things we were working on come together in those two and a half games.

Chelsea presently holds the seventh-place spot in the standings, which is sufficient for them to go for the Europa Conference League for the next season. If Chelsea were to qualify, it is anticipated that they will play in the Conference League or Europa League, despite concerns that the team would find it difficult to adhere to Uefa’s Financial Fair Play regulations, which are different from the Premier League’s profit and sustainability criteria.

The Conference League would provide young players priceless European experience and the opportunity to win a trophy, but it would not fulfill Chelsea’s aspirations and would theoretically cost the club money. Officials from Europe and competing clubs would also consider it impolite to withdraw from the tournament.

Sam Jewell, the new head of global recruiting for Chelsea, returned to work at Brighton after a gardening leave. Stewart and Winstanley will get his reports.