Who will the next permanent Chelsea manager be?

[Michael Tucker]

Pochettino. The only question being when he'll take over, 

My guess is that he'll leave things with Frank until we're ready for the pre-season.

Things are looking up (I think!).

[xceleryx]

3 hours ago, Michael Tucker said:

Pochettino. The only question being when he'll take over, 

My guess is that he'll leave things with Frank until we're ready for the pre-season.

Things are looking up (I think!).

I can the changeover happening virtually days after the seasons ends. 

Frank will have completed his duties, and this allows Poch and his staff to step in and start putting in place their pre-season plans. 

[asvaberg]

So it will be Pochettino as caretaker and Lukaku back as our striker, according to media.

I can see a turbulent 2023-2024 season written all over this and I wish myself good mental health 🙂

[My Blood Is Blue]

41 minutes ago, asvaberg said:

So it will be Pochettino as caretaker and Lukaku back as our striker, according to media.

I can see a turbulent 2023-2024 season written all over this and I wish myself good mental health 🙂

Well, I hope he isn't coming in as caretaker manager, that would be madness!

I think we have little choice with Lukaku, unfortunately, as Inter don't want him back and no other club will be willing to pay the ridiculous wages he is on. I don't want him back, far from it, but I really don't think we'll have an other choice... I just hope it doesn't stop us from going out and buying a proper striker as I cannot see Lukaku being the man to get us 25+ goals next season.

[Chelsea_Matt]

42 minutes ago, asvaberg said:

So it will be Pochettino as caretaker and Lukaku back as our striker, according to media.

I can see a turbulent 2023-2024 season written all over this and I wish myself good mental health 🙂

Poch won’t take any nonsense off Fatty Boom Boom imo 

[asvaberg]

Oops, with 'caretaker' I ment being the manager, of course.

[Holymoly]

Verbal agreement reached with MoPo.

[boratsbrother]

Fans expect Poch to play a high pressing game. No problem with that, but with the return of Lukaku and the prospect of Enzo being played higher up the pitch, we would have two players very unsuited for the pressing game. Lukaku doesn't have the fitness or mobility for it and  Enzo lacks the pace, so I wonder how Poch will get around that?

Edited April 26, 2023 by boratsbrother

[jasonb]

6 minutes ago, boratsbrother said:

Fans expect Poch to play a high pressing game. No problem with that, but with the return of Lukaku and the prospect of Enzo being played higher up the pitch, we would have two players very unsuited for the pressing game. Lukaku doesn't have the fitness or mobility for it and  Enzo lacks the pace, so I wonder how Poch will get around that?

Yes I agree on both players, no point in getting Poch if he can not build his own team.

In my opinion you can only have one player in midfield and attack that does not press for the system to work.

 

[BMox81]

Good luck to him trying to get something out of these players is all I’ll say.

This team really has broken me unfortunately.

[martin1905]

19 minutes ago, boratsbrother said:

Fans expect Poch to play a high pressing game. No problem with that, but with the return of Lukaku and the prospect of Enzo being played higher up the pitch, we would have two players very unsuited for the pressing game. Lukaku doesn't have the fitness or mobility for it and  Enzo lacks the pace, so I wonder how Poch will get around that?

You don't have to be quick to press. It's not about running around at 100 miles an hour, it's far more tactical than that. 

His Tottenham team had a midfield of Wanyama, Dembele, Ali, Eriksen, none of them are quick.

The press is as much about cutting out passing lanes as it is actually pressing the player in possession, something Enzo is ridiculously good at. 

[martin1905]

Should clarify, obviously if the entire team was slow it wouldn't work but for a team to be successful at pressing it comes from the full backs playing high and the wide players plus attacking midfielder/number 10 being the main players that press the player in possession. In groups of twos and threes. 

The midfield players, apart from one that normally steps up to help the press are there to cut out passing lanes and receive the ball once possession has been won back, then quickly move it on.

Enzo is literally the perfect midfielder,  in so many ways, especially in a team that wants to win the ball back high up the pitch, and quickly.

It's far more about fitness than it is speed.

Edited April 26, 2023 by martin1905

[Chelsea_Matt]

38 minutes ago, martin1905 said:

Should clarify, obviously if the entire team was slow it wouldn't work but for a team to be successful at pressing it comes from the full backs playing high and the wide players plus attacking midfielder/number 10 being the main players that press the player in possession. In groups of twos and threes. 

The midfield players, apart from one that normally steps up to help the press are there to cut out passing lanes and receive the ball once possession has been won back, then quickly move it on.

Enzo is literally the perfect midfielder,  in so many ways, especially in a team that wants to win the ball back high up the pitch, and quickly.

It's far more about fitness than it is speed.

Speed of thought!

[kev61]

4 hours ago, Chelsea_Matt said:

Speed of thought!

Yep like Thiago and of course JT .Without more recruitment i think we still need a solution, (or even a big improvement with the players we have)  to our awful midfield.It will take imagination and I hope Frank plays outside the box for his remaing games he's got left(starting with tonight)he's got nothing to lose.

Unless he's thinking about his reputation and future career of course.

[Holymoly]

1 hour ago, kev61 said:

I hope Frank plays outside the box for his remaing games he's got left.

Lampard is a very conservative coach. Don't expect anything out of the ordinary especially given his answer to the question pre match about whether he would be playing the younger new signings. "If they're good enough" he said. My god they must be rubbish if they can'y out train the bunch we already rely on.

[Willian Dollar Baby]

Enzo is very capable of playing in a team that can press surrounded by the right players. 

Unfortunately I think we may see Lukaku come back as it seems Inter are no longer interest in taking him back. If Poch can get him properly fit he could definitely be a great player to have in the squad, on paper. Unfortunately his attitude stinks and as shown under Tuchel he expects to play every game or will throw a tantrum. 

Players I would realistically like to see go in the summer:

Ziyech

Pulisic 

CHO 

Lukaku

Felix, Zakaria (please don't sign)

Mendy or Kepa (don't care which)

Mount or Gallagher (preferably Mount to stay)

Koulibaly (please please)

Kovacic (if replaced)

Azpi (way past his best)

Aubameyang 

Chuckwemeka, Broja, D Fofana, Slonina, Hall + more I've probably forgot (loan) 

 

Also wouldn't be too bothered if these left:

Chalobah 

Kante (too injury prone)

Havertz 

Sterling 

Thiago Silva (love him but it might be time to move on)

Cucurella 

RLC (seemingly happy to be back up so not fussed either way)

 

If we get rid of these, bring back Colwill and sign a new GK, DM and Striker then we are looking great. Easy right 😂

The new recruitment team certainly have a lot of work to do this summer however I do think we have a lot of great talent here already. 

[Sciatika]

6 hours ago, Chelsea_Matt said:

Speed of thought!

I don't think they think about it. They become so good at reading the game that they intuit the right position to be in before the opposition start the play.

[xceleryx]

16 hours ago, martin1905 said:

Should clarify, obviously if the entire team was slow it wouldn't work but for a team to be successful at pressing it comes from the full backs playing high and the wide players plus attacking midfielder/number 10 being the main players that press the player in possession. In groups of twos and threes. 

The midfield players, apart from one that normally steps up to help the press are there to cut out passing lanes and receive the ball once possession has been won back, then quickly move it on.

Enzo is literally the perfect midfielder,  in so many ways, especially in a team that wants to win the ball back high up the pitch, and quickly.

It's far more about fitness than it is speed.

Just to tack onto this.

Pressing is basically all about spacial denial and forcing the opposition to take risks to progress the ball forward. 

Organisation plays a huge part, with a byproduct of this being good tactical setup by the manager and understanding by the players. 

Speed and mobility help to rush and of course get to desired areas of the pitch quicker, but at the end of the day it's not essential as you've expressed. 

We'll be a far more organised side under Poch (should he join), which is going to be a huge step up from where we've been this season.  Then it'll be about getting us fitter so we can sustain a higher intensity and tempo for longer into games, which will also make a huge improvement on its own. 

[Sleeping Dave]

11 hours ago, Willian Dollar Baby said:

Enzo is very capable of playing in a team that can press surrounded by the right players. 

Unfortunately I think we may see Lukaku come back as it seems Inter are no longer interest in taking him back. If Poch can get him properly fit he could definitely be a great player to have in the squad, on paper. Unfortunately his attitude stinks and as shown under Tuchel he expects to play every game or will throw a tantrum. 

Players I would realistically like to see go in the summer:

Ziyech

Pulisic 

CHO 

Lukaku

Felix, Zakaria (please don't sign)

Mendy or Kepa (don't care which)

Mount or Gallagher (preferably Mount to stay)

Koulibaly (please please)

Kovacic (if replaced)

Azpi (way past his best)

Aubameyang 

Chuckwemeka, Broja, D Fofana, Slonina, Hall + more I've probably forgot (loan) 

 

Also wouldn't be too bothered if these left:

Chalobah 

Kante (too injury prone)

Havertz 

Sterling 

Thiago Silva (love him but it might be time to move on)

Cucurella 

RLC (seemingly happy to be back up so not fussed either way)

 

If we get rid of these, bring back Colwill and sign a new GK, DM and Striker then we are looking great. Easy right 😂

The new recruitment team certainly have a lot of work to do this summer however I do think we have a lot of great talent here already. 

That would give us a strong squad of GK1, Arrizabalaga, Bettinelli, James, Gusto, Fofana, Badiashile, Colwill, Chilwell, DM1, CM, Enzo, Mount, Nkunku, Mudryk, Madueke, S. 

A strong squad of 17 players where three of them are goalkeepers! 😅 It’s unlikely we rid of Cucurella or Sterling. Havertz likely to stay on and so is Kovacic and Chalobah. That gives us 22 players - 19 outfielders. Perhaps a good idea to have as small of a squad as possible to go through the three competitions we’re in next season? We’ll play anything between 40 to 52 games next season. Likely somewhere between 40-48. 19 fit outfielders should be enough for that. 

[My Blood Is Blue]

4 hours ago, Sleeping Dave said:

That would give us a strong squad of GK1, Arrizabalaga, Bettinelli, James, Gusto, Fofana, Badiashile, Colwill, Chilwell, DM1, CM, Enzo, Mount, Nkunku, Mudryk, Madueke, S. 

A strong squad of 17 players where three of them are goalkeepers! 😅 It’s unlikely we rid of Cucurella or Sterling. Havertz likely to stay on and so is Kovacic and Chalobah. That gives us 22 players - 19 outfielders. Perhaps a good idea to have as small of a squad as possible to go through the three competitions we’re in next season? We’ll play anything between 40 to 52 games next season. Likely somewhere between 40-48. 19 fit outfielders should be enough for that. 

With 9 subs that leaves us very little wiggle room. I know we can bring some kids on to the bench, but I think it's worth having a couple of extra players to cover us. We're likely to see 4231 under Poch most of the time so I'd suggest we aim for:

3 GKs

5 CBs

4 FBs

4 CMs

6 AMs

3 STKs

A squad of 25 (22 outfield), meaning if a striker is injured we still have adequate cover from the bench and the same for the CBs... although, could possibly drop to just 4 CBs.

[jasonb]

I personally would not have Lukaku back too egocentric and likely to mouth off at the press the first time things don't work for him.

I think Poch will have someone  in mind we don't know about that can do a job and probably for a modest fee. 

 

[Sleeping Dave]

38 minutes ago, My Blood Is Blue said:

With 9 subs that leaves us very little wiggle room. I know we can bring some kids on to the bench, but I think it's worth having a couple of extra players to cover us. We're likely to see 4231 under Poch most of the time so I'd suggest we aim for:

3 GKs

5 CBs

4 FBs

4 CMs

6 AMs

3 STKs

A squad of 25 (22 outfield), meaning if a striker is injured we still have adequate cover from the bench and the same for the CBs... although, could possibly drop to just 4 CBs.

I’d say it’s rather pointless to have five pure CBs if we play with a 4. Then four should be more than enough for the amount of games we are supposed to play. I’m also not sure we need three strikers, perhaps if we have a 55 games season ahead of us, but not for 45 games. 

3GK

4FB

4CB

4CM

6AM (think the Eriksen and Son positions - I.e 6 for 3)

2S

That’s 20 outfielders. I would also argue that we could possibly manage just fine with 7 defenders instead of 8. 

[xceleryx]

41 minutes ago, Sleeping Dave said:

I’d say it’s rather pointless to have five pure CBs if we play with a 4. Then four should be more than enough for the amount of games we are supposed to play. I’m also not sure we need three strikers, perhaps if we have a 55 games season ahead of us, but not for 45 games. 

3GK

4FB

4CB

4CM

6AM (think the Eriksen and Son positions - I.e 6 for 3)

2S

That’s 20 outfielders. I would also argue that we could possibly manage just fine with 7 defenders instead of 8. 

I think we've gotta factor in just who are in these positions and their injury history also. Even with less games we may need to consider one or two extras in certain areas just for some insurance. 

[Blue Moon]

From The Athletic:

"Chelsea are now growing desperate to appoint Mauricio Pochettino as their next permanent manager after watching result tank in the past few weeks with five defeats in a row under Frank Lampard.

Pochettino’s leverage in talks to succeed Potter is being bolstered every time Chelsea take to the pitch [and lose]," The Athletic explains.

After everything that has happened this season, after all the hits to their credibility in this excruciating first campaign of their ownership, can owners Boehly and Eghbali now afford for the most proven candidate left on their shortlist — and so clearly the preferred choice — to walk away? [no way]"

Pochettino has been making some difficult demands from Chelsea before putting pen to paper as their next coach. Many of those demands are not necessarily money-related. 

According to sources, Poch doesn't want Chelsea co-owners storming his dressing room. He also wants complete control over transfers and player development. These are almost identical demands Thomas Tuchel made before being shown the Chelsea door."

[chrisb]

Don’t think he’s asking for too much there, let’s hope they’ve learned their lesson from the TT debacle and act accordingly.