Boehly Backs Poch Amid Chelsea’s Late-Season Surge
In the midst of swirling speculation about Mauricio Pochettino’s future, Chelsea owner Todd Boehly has thrown his weight behind the Argentine manager, praising the team’s “beautiful football” and recent upturn in form. Chelsea followed their 2-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur last Thursday with a commanding 5-0 triumph over West Ham United, keeping the club firmly in the race for European football next season.
Boehly highlighted the fluid and organized play seen in the second half of the 2-2 draw against Aston Villa, as well as in the victories over Tottenham and West Ham, as evidence of the team’s progression, saying “We’ve seen the last two and a half games, at least in the second half at Aston Villa [2-2 draw] and Tottenham and West Ham where we played just beautiful football.”
“It was so fluid, it was exactly the way we drew it up, when we came out of the back, built up and moved up the pitch, [it was] very organised and the number of shots we had on board. In those two and a half games, you could really start to see what we were working on coming together.”
“Even the commentary has changed over the last two and a half games. I’ve never seen anything change so quickly.”
Pochettino, who signed a two-year contract last summer with an option for a third year, had previously called for the “stupid rumors” surrounding his future to stop, saying “You need to ask the club if they want me to keep going or not.”
Despite a rocky start to the season, Chelsea has only suffered one defeat in their last 12 Premier League matches, climbing to seventh place and just two points behind Newcastle United with three games remaining. The Blues also reached the League Cup final, losing 1-0 to Liverpool in extra time, and the FA Cup semifinals, where they fell to Manchester City by the same margin.