Mauricio Pochettino warned of Chelsea stars ‘moaning’ ahead of summer clear-out
Mauricio Pochettino is set to become the new Chelsea manager, replacing Frank Lampard at the end of the season. Former Tottenham boss Ruud Gullit has provided valuable advice to Pochettino regarding the challenging task of managing a large group of discontented players.
According to football.london, Pochettino has reached an agreement with Chelsea and will sign a three-year contract after arriving in London this week.
In order to implement his new ideas, Mauricio Pochettino will need to prioritize trimming down Chelsea’s squad, which currently consists of 32 players.
He will have to offload at least eight players initially, and if the club intends to strengthen the team during the summer transfer window, Pochettino may have to make even more significant cuts.
Before his arrival at the Cobham training ground, Ruud Gullit has advised the incoming Chelsea manager to exercise caution. Gullit warns that the peripheral players within the squad might be understandably frustrated due to their lack of involvement, particularly when the team is not performing up to their potential.
In an interview with The Mirror, as reported by the Express, Gullit stated: : “There are too many players. Too many good players. How many are there? Thirty?
“If you’ve been bought by Chelsea, then you are at a level and you want to play. But they will complain if they are not in the team. The players who aren’t playing are going to talk badly. That’s normal.
“But if Chelsea win, they have nothing to say. They shut up. And now you have players who are in the team on Sunday and out of it on Wednesday. They are moaning, too. Chelsea isn’t winning. So they all moan.
“There are uncertainties everywhere. And it’s the ones who don’t play who are the ones you have to be careful of. So, the group is too big. It’s creating a horrible atmosphere.
“And they took a gamble, buying all these players and putting them on seven-year contracts. Did they ever stop to think how they were going to sell them if it didn’t click? It doesn’t look like it.”
Gary Neville has expressed high praise for Mauricio Pochettino, despite acknowledging the tough tasks that lie ahead for the Argentine at Chelsea. Speaking on The Overlap, the former Manchester United defender commented, “I think he [Pochettino] is a really talented coach.
“I think Chelsea next year could really surprise us. Pochettino will bring the club together because he will; he’s likeable, and the players will respect him enormously.
“I think he’ll do a very, very good job next season. He’ll cover a lot of the stuff that’s going on behind the scenes is my prediction. Those players are perfect for Pochettino; they are talented and young, but they just need direction.”
Mauricio Pochettino warned of Chelsea stars ‘moaning’ ahead of summer clear-out
