Chelsea 'fear sacking Mauricio Pochettino could lead to financial breach'

By Darren Plant, Senior Reporter | 05 February 2024

Chelsea 'fear sacking Pochettino could lead to financial breach'

Chelsea may reportedly be unable to sack head coach Mauricio Pochettino due to the impact that it would have on fulfilling Profit and Sustainability criteria.

Chelsea may reportedly not be in a position where they can sack head coach Mauricio Pochettino before the end of the season.

In the summer, the Argentine penned a two-year contract, with the option of a third, as he was tasked with spearheading a revival for the Blues in 2023-24.

While Chelsea have recently reached the EFL Cup final, they have remained inconsistent in the Premier League, currently sitting in 11th position in the standings.

Up until last week, it appeared that the West Londoners were going through somewhat of a revival, but back-to-back defeats to Liverpool and Wolverhampton Wanderers have changed the mood at Stamford Bridge.

Jeers followed the 4-2 reverse at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers on Sunday and Pochettino has subsequently acknowledged that being removed from his position in the dugout is a possibility.

Chelsea's Conor Gallagher reacts after Wolverhampton Wanderers' Matheus Cunha scores their third goal on February 3, 2024 © Reuters

However, according to the Daily Mail, Chelsea's co-owners Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital may not be able to act during 2023-24.

The report claims that there are concerns behind the scenes that Chelsea would breach the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability regulations should they have to pay up the contracts of Pochettino and his backroom staff.

That sum would allegedly be in excess of £10m at a point when the club are already struggling to ensure that they fulfil all criteria in the short term.

Chelsea had wanted to sell at least one academy graduate during the January transfer window but no clubs were prepared to meet their asking prices for the likes of Trevoh Chalobah, Conor Gallagher or Armando Broja.

Chelsea forward Armando Broja celebrates scoring against Preston North End on January 6, 2024. © Reuters

While Broja has made the loan switch to Fulham, whether the Cottagers will need to pay a fee is dependent on the amount of game time that the forward receives during the rest of the campaign.

Chelsea are reportedly already in a position where they need to make players sales before the end of June - like they did last summer - if their accounts are to be in order to meet Premier League rules.

Pochettino faces a difficult period to ease the pressure on his position with games against Aston Villa, Crystal Palace and Manchester City away from home to be played between February 7 and February 17.

The first of those matches is a fourth-round replay in the FA Cup, a competition that Chelsea will want to win in order to qualify for Europe next season.