'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAQAAAQABAAD/2wCEAAMDAwMDAwQEBAQFBQUFBQcHBgYHBwsICQgJCAsRCwwLCwwLEQ8SDw4PEg8bFRMTFRsfGhkaHyYiIiYwLTA+PlQBAwMDAwMDBAQEBAUFBQUFBwcGBgcHCwgJCAkICxELDAsLDAsRDxIPDg8SDxsVExMVGx8aGRofJiIiJjAtMD4+VP/AABEIAAUACgMBIgACEQEDEQH/xABfAAEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABggQAAIDAAMBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAECAwQFABEhMQYBAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMEEQACAQUBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAABAwIAESExQQQS/9oADAMBAAIRAxEAPwDD2NpZuP8Ars+V8mtarZl6eqKsoUrLGHJBftT2w7+kch9KCxZ0bc9a1JUglsSPFWRmKQozEqi+/FHg445Yjzpm9sjHPzDRIGbnQomuYErF+y4L8Ff/2Q=='%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Former Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino is reportedly open to taking up the job as the new Chelsea manager. Pochettino previously had an altercation with Chelsea legend John Terry after a London derby when both Spurs and the Blues were fighting for the Premier League title.
Graham Potter was relieved of his duties by the Blues on Sunday (April 2) after a poor run of form. Bruno Saltor is in charge of the club on an interim basis. However, with only 10 games to go in the league and a huge UEFA Champions League showdown against Real Madrid approaching, the Blues need to appoint a new manager soon.
Pochettino was in charge of Spurs for 293 games, winning 160 of those matches. He also led them to an unlikely Champions League final in 2019 where they lost to Liverpool. The Argentine has been out of job since parting ways with Paris Saint-Germain at the end of the 2022 season.
Alongside former Bayern Munich coach Julian Nagelsmann, Pochettino is reportedly at the top of Chelsea's list of targets. Manchester United legend Gary Neville recently endorsed the Argentine to take charge at Stamford Bridge, saying (via Express):
"If they sign (Zinedine) Zidane, (Diego) Simeone, Enrique, they are going to want another £300m because they won't like some of the players they have signed. They have got to appoint a manager that is going to inherit and like the squad they have already got. I think that man, because a lot of them are young, is Pochettino."
When will Chelsea play their first game of the post-Graham Potter era?
Chelsea's first game of the post-Graham Potter era will take place on April 4. The Blues are set to host Liverpool in a Premier League clash at Stamford Bridge.
The west Londoners lost their previous match by a scoreline of 2-0 against Aston Villa, a defeat that marked the end of Potter's time in charge of the club. They are currently 11th in the league table and will need an almighty push to qualify for European competitions next season.
Liverpool, on the other hand, will also enter the contest on the back of a defeat. They were demolished, 4-1, by Manchester City at the Etihad on April 1.
