Mauricio Pochettino has finally reached an agreement with Chelsea to become their new head coach, according to reports. The Argentine had been the frontrunner for the job for some time, but negotiations had dragged out over several weeks, with Pochettino believed to have been keen on securing a greater say in transfers and other areas of the club. The Athletic are now reporting that terms have been agreed and Pochettino will bring his full backroom team with him to Stamford Bridge. This includes long-serving assistants Jesus Perez and Miguel D’Agostino, goalkeeper coach Toni Jimenez and sport scientist son Sebastiano Pochettino. This will be particularly galling to Tottenham fans, as Pochettino spent five years at Chelsea’s London rivals and guided them to the Champions League final in 2019.
An official announcement is expected to come at the start of next week, with Pochettino taking over the reins in the summer. Caretaker boss Frank Lampard will see out the remainder of the season, though there is a possibility that Pochettino will be in the stands to watch Chelsea play before the campaign reaches its conclusion. Once he takes over, Pochettino will be tasked with getting more out of the players who have underperformed this season as well as developing the club’s young, up-and-coming talents – something he has a track record of doing dating back to his time in charge of Espanyol. He will also be given the chance to offer his opinion on every possible exit before any decision is made, as Chelsea need to offload a number of players this summer and have a heavily bloated squad.