#Pochettino’s Job Looks Safe For Now, Despite Devastating Defeat Against #Wolves—-Mauricio Pochettino will hold his press conference as expected on Tuesday, suggesting his job remains safe despite mounting scrutiny in the wake of a calamitous loss to Wolves.
Chelsea travel to Villa Park on Wednesday for their FA Cup fourth round replay desperate to stop the rot and still reeling from a 4-2 defeat at Stamford Bridge that saw them booed off the pitch.
Matheus Cunha’s hat-trick and Axel Disasi’s own goal cancelled out Cole Palmer’s opener, before Thiago Silva scored a late consolation for the Blues.
The defeat left Chelsea 11th on the Premier League table, 15 points adrift of fourth-placed Aston Villa.
The dismal result came just four days after the Blues were on the receiving end of a 4-1 thrashing against Liverpool at Anfield on Wednesday night.
The Blues have now lost 10 of their 23 Premier League games and Pochettino admitted his team are not currently playing well enough to secure European qualification.
‘At the moment, that is the reality,’ the Argentine said in his press conference.
‘Myself, also. I’m the first one responsible. What we were showing was that we are not good enough. We didn’t manage the situation properly and, of course, no one can be safe.
‘I don’t want to come here and say, “No, I am the best, and the players are the worst”.
‘We are all responsible. The players need to take responsibility like I take responsibility. At the moment, we are not matching the history of the club. That is true.’
The thumping loss saw even Silva’s wife pile pressure on the manager.
Silva’s partner Belle posted on her social media: ‘It’s time to change. If you wait any longer it will be too late.’
Chelsea have spent over £1billion in four transfer windows since Todd Boehly took over the club, with Pochettino splashing £400m on players last summer alone.
But the Blues have little to show for their investment so far, with a place in the Carabao Cup final later this month the only positive in an otherwise dismal season.
On Sunday, Chelsea’s supporters directed their anger towards the team, booing the players off the pitch at half-time and full-time.
A small group even sang Jose Mourinho’s name, with the Portuguese manager now out of work following his sacking by Roma last month.
‘I’m a human,’ Pochettino said of the criticism. ‘Of course that is not a nice situation.
‘When you don’t win at a club like Chelsea with all the expectation, you need to accept that what happened can happen. To be in this business, at this type of club, you need to be strong.
‘The perception is one thing, another is the reality. The perception is that Chelsea should be in a different position but we are not there. Maybe because we are not good enough.
‘To understand the fans is really important. We say, “Yes, we want to apologise, I feel sorry”.’
The defeat against Wolves was Pochettino’s 31st game in charge of the Blues, matching the total Graham Potter managed before he was sacked in April last year.
The Argentine has won 15 games to Potter’s 12 in all competitions, but both have lost 11 times. In the Premier League, the Blues have won 31 points under Pochettino, three more than they did with the former Brighton manager at the helm.
Under Pochettino Chelsea have been significantly more prolific, scoring 54 goals compared to the 33 they managed under Potter.
Significantly, however, they have also conceded 48 times under the current regime, a marked increase to the 31 goals they allowed under Potter.
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