Burkina Faso
Indonesia
Lithuania
Montenegro
Nigeria
North Macedonia
United Arab Emirates

Chelsea

sportsmole.co.uk, 22 May 2024, 11:00
Supporting a club like Chelsea comes with its pros and cons. You could probably make that case for any club, but with Chelsea, you know that emotionally investing yourself to a manager of player comes with its consequences.

Blues fans have had it all season with regards to Conor Gallagher. The homegrown, midfield enforcer full of pent-up aggression and desire having had to go the long way round to showcase why he should be his team's leader for the next decade, only to play his football with the feeling of being forced out by what has effectively become a bureaucracy off the pitch.

That is what has made his performances all the more impressive. His back has constantly been against the wall. One false move and Todd Boehly and co could add it to their short list of justifiable reasons to cash in this summer. Head coach Mauricio Pochettino has found himself facing extremely similar circumstances.

When the news broke on Tuesday that Pochettino was leaving Chelsea, the hearts of the majority of a fanbase would have sunk, even some of those who initially had reservations about a former Tottenham Hotspur boss representing their club. Perhaps more importantly, the players would have felt the same.

Pochettino emerges with enhanced reputation

Ignore the headlines regardingtransfer fees; Pochettino has had to deal with a storm this season. He was presented with players that he did not necessarily want to sign. He was left with one of the youngest, most expensively-assembled squads in the history of football. On-the-field squabbling over penalties. Moulding personalities on a daily basis. Dealing with crisises in confidence. Never having a fully-fit squad. The list could go on.

And yet he reached the full-time whistle against Bournemouth on Sunday afternoon not knowing whether ending the season with five successive victories when he and his players had to deliver on each occasion was enough to keep him in a job. It is lunacy.

There have been enough reports to have confidence in this being a mutual decision. From the Argentine's perspective, he knows that his reputation has not only been saved, it has been enhanced. There are projects at Manchester United and Bayern Munich that surely have his name on it.

But the fact that Pochettino's - or Gallagher's - departure was or is on the table in the first place should be met by the condemnation that it warrants.

Boehly, Eghbali missing the point

Chelsea scored 103 goals during Pochettino's 51 matches in charge. As many as 35 came in the final 13 Premier League fixtures, a run which featured just one defeat. Aside from that 5-0 loss at Arsenal, Chelsea netted at least twice in every game.

Nevertheless, regardless of this being as contradictory as it sounds, Boehly and Clearlake see football - and sport in general - as entertainment. It is a complex business, people get that, but they are prepared to risk alienation with the club's core in order to enforce a strategic model that is pushing the limits in every way possible. Again, lunacy.

Within a week of ticket prices being increased for the first time in 13 years, there have been countless claims that the co-owners are prepared to pay £55m for a Brazilian prospect who only turned 17 last month. It would be wrong to associate the two developments hand in hand, yet it is another clear sign that Boehly and Behdad Eghbali care little for public perception.

There is a naivety about how they conduct their business. There always has been, but the biggest naivety is ignoring the importance of emotional investment. When you support a club at any level, you want to be taken on a journey. You want to know that what you are watching means something. You want to be assured that everyone is fighting, co-operating, in unison towards the same goal. Instead, Chelsea are becoming that Netflix series you enjoy watching that gets pulled after a few episodes.

Boehly and Eghbali are showing that they are prepared to rip the heart out of the club. No new contract for 39-year-old Thiago Silva felt like the right time, granted, but refusing to compromise with an invested Pochettino over transfers, being hellbent on selling an invested Gallagher, as well as Trevoh Chalobah who features in the same bracket? Chelsea are on the road to becoming soulless.

Tuchel is only saviour

Chelsea are now allegedly being viewed as "an opportunity" by a wide array of managers around Europe. Boehly and Eghbali - as well as sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart - are said to be fixated with appointing a certain type of "young" manager, regardless of their experience. Given how Pochettino has left the club, it feels like they want someone who will not dispute their method. Who will nod their head and keep their mouth shut.

And that is perhaps why a reunion with the universally-loved Thomas Tuchel - the Champions-League-winning head coach that the owners sacked within months of their arrival - is probably no more than a pipedream for Chelsea fans. Many of Tuchel's jobs around Europe have ended in disagreements behind the scenes, but there is no other manager on the market who will be able to engineer a reconcilitation between Chelsea's fans and owners.

In whichever context you look at, a turbulent period is around the corner for Chelsea. There was a time when meeting the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability regulations was the priority, but Boehly and Eghbali are distancing themselves from what attracts the traditional supporter to a football club by the month - you could say the week - where they could soon reach the point of no return.

Ever since Abramovich stepped through the door in 2003, Chelsea and chaos have gone hand in hand, yet you sense that we may have seen nothing yet.

Show more

Top News

28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk River Plate board member Stefano Di Carlo has insisted that talented youngster Franco Mastantuono will remain with the club for the rest of 2025 despite reported interest from Chelsea and Manchester United. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United are reportedly prepared to splash out €100m (£85m) swoop for Inter Milan defenders Denzel Dumfries and Yann Bisseck. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Crystal Palace's Adam Wharton is appreciated by Liverpool and was previously tracked by the club when he was playing for Blackburn Rovers, Reds transfer expert David Lynch has claimed. 28 April 2025 talksport.com Chelsea could play their matches at Twickenham during the possible redevelopment of Stamford Bridge. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk After Barcelona crushed their European dreams, Chelsea Women will turn their focus back to their Women's Super League title bid when they travel to Leigh Sports Village for Wednesday's meeting with Manchester United Women. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Fulham are reportedly prepared to hold talks with Southampton defender Kyle Walker-Peters over a free transfer. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Ousmane Dembele could break a Paris Saint-Germain record set by Kylian Mbappe when Les Parisiens face Arsenal in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final at the Emirates on Tuesday night. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Mikel Arteta has provided the latest on three of Arsenal's injured troops ahead of Tuesday's Champions League semi-final first leg showdown with Paris Saint-Germain. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk After securing their place in the Women's Champions League final, Arsenal Women will return to domestic action for Wednesday's league fixture against Aston Villa Women. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United are reportedly hopeful that Amad Diallo and Matthijs de Ligt could return to the first-team fold this week. 28 April 2025 talksport.com Arsenal have been given one clear message ahead of their Champions League semi-final tie against Paris Saint-Germain - just go for it. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United are reportedly expected to reach an agreement to sign Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Matheus Cunha in the near future. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Gabriel Martinelli has responded to a question about his Arsenal contract situation ahead of Tuesday's Champions League semi-final first leg against Paris Saint-Germain. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Two Champions League-less European giants collide in a tantalising semi-final first leg on Tuesday evening at the Emirates, where Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain reunite six months on from their league-phase battle. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly placed a price tag on Cristian Romero amid interest from Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Wolfsburg have reportedly decided against signing Brentford loanee Mads Roerslev on a permanent transfer. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Two titans of European football, Barcelona and Inter Milan meet again in the Champions League this season, both vying for a place in the final. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Ex-Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has congratulated Arne Slot's side on their Premier League title triumph with a heart-warming post on Instagram. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Aston Villa forward Marcus Rashford is reportedly set to miss the remainder of the campaign due to a hamstring injury. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Either Arsenal or Paris Saint-Germain will take a giant step towards that elusive first Champions League title on Tuesday evening, when Mikel Arteta and Luis Enrique butt heads in the first leg of their semi-final battle at the Emirates. 28 April 2025 talksport.com Arsenal have been dealt a selection headache for their crunch Champions League semi-final showdown against Paris Saint-Germain. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Bayern Munich star Leroy Sane has reportedly rejected the advances of Liverpool and Arsenal in order to remain in Germany. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United are reportedly set to beat Arsenal to the signing of Sporting Lisbon forward Viktor Gyokeres. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has been handed a double fitness boost before Tuesday's Champions League semi-final first leg with Paris Saint-Germain, as both Ben White and Mikel Merino trained on Monday. 28 April 2025 talksport.com Leeds United have unveiled their first proposed images for their ambitious stadium plans. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Mikel Merino has enjoyed a Kai Havertz-esque resurgence at Arsenal, but the Spaniard and the German will be fighting for a spot in the team next term, Gunners expert Charles Watts believes. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Into the Champions League semi-finals for a second time in three seasons, Inter Milan will visit Barcelona on Wednesday, as the European giants play the first leg of their last-four tie at Montjuic. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Still seeking an historic quadruple, Barcelona play the first leg of their Champions League semi-final tie against Inter Milan on Wednesday, when the teams convene at Montjuic. 28 April 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Chelsea are reportedly aware of the fee that they may need to pay to sign Borussia Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Kobel. 28 April 2025 talksport.com Liverpool have won the Premier League but will have to wait until the end of the season to lift the trophy and parade it for their fans.
Wed 30 Apr, 19:00
Barcelona Barcelona
-
sch
Inter Inter
Thu 01 May, 19:00
Betis Betis
-
sch
Fiorentina Fiorentina
Sat 03 May, 16:00
A
Lecce Lecce
-
sch
Napoli Napoli