Mauricio Pochettino and Chelsea Football Club have agreed to part ways with mutual consent. Pochettino, in his first season with the club, was under heavy scrutiny for much of the season while the club dwindled mid-table.
Mauricio Pochettino and Chelsea FC part ways
Chelsea picked up form towards the end of the season and successfully secured European football after finishing sixth place in the Premier League table. Whether the club gets to participate in UEFA’s Europa League or Conference League is still at bay.
That will be determined by the winner of Sunday’s FA Cup final between Manchester City and Manchester United. If City wins, Chelsea will get the Europa League and, if United win it will be the Conference League.
Who could be Chelsea’s next manager?
The next step for Chelsea is to appoint a new manager, and several targets have emerged in the supposed managerial shortlist. Kieran McKenna of Ipwisch Town, who has led them to back-to-back-to-back promotions, is a managerial free agent and is supposedly interested in joining the club. Multiple outlets have reported Chelsea’s interest in McKenna, and he is the apparent frontrunner.
There are other targets though of course, with Enzo Maresca of Leicester City and Thomas Frank of Brentford being notable candidates. Of course, managerial free agent and recent Bayern Munich manager Thomas Tuchel deserves a shout after bringing home the second Champions League Trophy back to Stamford Bridge in 2021.
The conflict in the club resulted in the discussion of transfer business, with Pochettino reportedly wanting more say. The club clearly wants a manager who is willing to coach the players given to them by the board and who trusts the process of the sporting directors. They are probably aiming for a structure similar to Manchester City and Real Madrid.