MSN
Talk that Mauricio Pochettino is facing the sack at Chelsea is beginning to gather serious pace amid claims Blues co-owner Todd Boehly is already getting itchy feet and following talk that only one thing can save the Argentinian from getting the boot now.
Pochettino was appointed by the American over the summer after the club had flitted from manager to manager under their regime so far. While Thomas Tuchel quickly fell on his sword soon after their arrival, Chelsea suffered something of a downturn in results that neither chosen one, Graham Potter, nor his temporary successor, Frank Lampard, could fix.
That ultimately saw the Blues finish a disappointing 12th in the Premier League, a whopping 45 points adrift of champions Manchester City.
With the arrival of Pochettino, who came with a big reputation following stints at Tottenham and PSG, together with another significant transfer spend, hopes were raised that Chelsea could elevate themselves back among the top-four and potentially in the title race again.
However, little has gone right for Pochettino so far this season, with the club dogged by inconsistency and Pochettino failing to get the most out of his expensively-assembled squad.
And with the Blues currently in ninth place, it’s been reported that Pochettino is already on borrowed time with one prominent board member growing tired of the same mistakes repeating themselves.
The Blues are still alive in the Carabao Cup, where they need to overturn a 1-0 deficit against Championship Middlesbrough in the second leg of their semi-finals, and also are through to the fourth round of the FA Cup, where they face Aston Villa.
Pochettino sack: Chelsea boss told he’s under serious pressure
However, one former Blues star insists it is time for Boehly to start putting pressure on Pochettino to make an instant improvement on their Premier League results.
And John Obi Mikel, who has been known not to mince his words, believes ‘now is the time’ for results to come for Pochettino.
“We’ve given them time now. it’s been half a year. Now it’s time to win. In Chelsea there’s no time. You have to win – that’s our motto,” Obi Mikel told Sky Sports at The Best FIFA Football Awards in London.
“If you don’t win, Roman gets you out of the door and gets someone else. So I think that should be the new owner’s way of thinking – you have to win. If you don’t win, what’s the point of being at Chelsea?
“The excuse of trying to review is done. So now we have to win games, play better, improve and try to compete. This year, knock it on the head now. Next year we need to be up there. We have to keep building the team. Everybody says we’ve spent a lot of money and we have.
