The Sun have dropped an exclusive with quotes from inside the Chelsea dressing room which insist that the players are big fans of manager Mauricio Pochettino despite bad results, and would be unhappy if he were sacked.
Of course there will be more going into a decision than just the players’ opinion, but it goes a long way to helping those upstairs be patient with a coach, no matter who they are.
“They are all buying into what Poch is trying to do. The problems at Chelsea are not all his fault. Some of the players think he is the best man-manager in the business,” Andre Dillon quotes “a source” inside the club as saying.
“If Poch gets sacked it won’t go down well at all. He is not the problem.”
That “buying in” is quite evident in what the players say, but it’s not always that evident on the pitch, where some appear to care just as little as they did under Graham Potter and Frank Lampard last year.
The best in the business
This is all very similar – spookily similar in fact – to the Daily Mail exclusive earlier on this evening. After a couple of days where we got a lot of pieces which were clearly being briefed by those in charge at the club (mainly saying simply that nothing would be decided until the end of the season), are we now getting the leaks from Pochettino’s side of the divide? It would certainly seem that way, given how positive they are about him.
Either way, one thing is for sure. The PR war has begun, and that removes any doubt that his job is seriously under threat. The fact we’ve got two more incredibly tough games on the horizon leaves us wondering where we will be at in a couple of weeks.
It’s really going to come down to the players showing their support for the manager on the pitch. It’s one thing to back the manager with your words, but this group have got to fight for him where and when it counts—specifically, on match day!
The problem with Arsenal match wasn’t the loss, it was the way the team folded so quickly in the second half, and that’s not entirely on the manager. There’s got to be a reaction from each and every man in those moments that says “I won’t allow myself, my club or my manager to be embarrassed” in that way, and that grit and fight back was slow in coming. Though they’re young, this group has got to realize that it’s ultimately THEIR PERFORMANCES that have put their manager’s job on the line. If you live him boys, then FIGHT FOR HIM!
This has everything to do with Jackson, just as we’ve seen games after games. When a team works so hard to create chances that are supposed to be put away but instead are being frustrated by an individual’s lack of professionalism and poor mentality in front of goal, the team tends to lose a bit of confidence and fighting spirit as the game progresses. Had Jackson utilized his chances, we would have had a better season. Infact, we might have won or drew the match with arsenal, and would have certainly won against Man City. Jackson’s best performances came when he was having competition from Broja and Nkunku for minutes, I think it’s best we drop him for two games and allow Deivid Washington start ahead of him, probably it will ginger him and bring back the Jackson we saw after the Africans Nations Cup. Jackson is mainly the catalyst that brings setback to the team every match day, plus the coach’s team selection and subs most times shows he does not really have it in him to lead this team to the promised land.