There might be no flowers for Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino as he takes his struggling team to Spurs in search of revival for his Blues side at the White Hart Lane for Monday night football.
Pochettino was in charge of Tottenham for over five seasons between 2014 and 2019, guiding them to second place in the Premier League and into a Champions League final.
However, his return to the English Premier League after a brief sojourn with Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) before joining Chelsea. But, his return has been characterised by poor outing on the field despite spending over £350 million ($664 million) on new signings during the close-season.
Chelsea is currently languishing in 11th place after only three league wins and Pochettino would want to turn the tide for his injury-hit team with a return to a familiar terrain in North London.
“It is a strange feeling to come back at Spurs after four years… but it’s gonna be a happy day. I feel Spurs can really win the league, they’re doing excellent job,” Pochettino said in a press conference.
The Chelsea manager also disclosed that he will try to stop Son from playing on Monday night. “I’m not going to play centre back, my centre back needs to stop him. We know him and he’s one of the best players in the Premier League. I hope it’s not going to be a good night for him,” Pochettino said, clarifying his coaching ideology, “I said the only teams I would never manage are Arsenal and Barcelona”.
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However, Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou is playing the mind game with Pochettino ahead of Monday’s night clash.
“It is undoubted that he had an unbelievable impact on this football club. He almost took the club to the ultimate summit of the Champions League, got close to the league, so his work is unquestioned,” Postecoglou said.
The Australian said the Chelsea manager had an “undeniable” impact on Spurs that will stand the test of time. “You look at Mauricio’s track record and I’ve got no doubt he’ll get Chelsea on the right path”.
According to him, the Argentine’s work remains respected in North London, even though he seems set to receive a hostile reception at the Tottenham Hostpur Stadium.
“I doubt there will be anything but respect for Mauricio from anyone at this football club, supporters or people associated but it doesn’t mean he will get a guard of honour on Monday night because we want to win,” he said.
Postecoglou’s start to life at Spurs has been smoother than Pochettino’s at Chelsea, with the latter picking up just 12 points from 10 games and sitting 11th in the Premier League table.
Tottenham are top of the league with eight wins and two draws but their boss insists that it is a matter of time until the Blues are also on the up.
