'Madness', 'four steps back' - Chelsea Mauricio Pochettino decision earns pundit shock and anger
Chelsea shocked the football world on Tuesday evening when announcing that Mauricio Pochettino had left the club by mutual consent.
While it wasn't the greatest of seasons for the Blues, things looked to be on a genuine upswing. Pochettino's side finished the season with five wins in a row - and just one defeat in their final 15 games of the Premier League season, leading them to sixth in the table and European football secured for next year.
With Chelsea's historical standards and the money invested by the new owners since taking over two years ago, that isn't where the club needs to be. However, with Todd Boehly recently preaching "patience", the move has come as a surprise when things looked to be turning for Pochettino.
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Scott Minto - Sky Sports
"I'm not quite as down with the kids as some of these players nowadays, but you can tell with these emojis; you know, one emoji speaks a thousand words, doesn't it, about how shocked the players were.
"And now the players have got to pick themselves up and go again. And people turn around and say 'look, they're getting highly paid and they've got to deal with it' and that's absolutely right.
"But once you've got a certain style and a way the manager likes to deal with things - we've talked about how heavy the Chelsea shirt has been in the last couple of seasons for these young, potential - not ready made - world class players, a lot of them foreign as well, still getting used to living in London, let alone playing at Stamford Bridge and everything that comes with that.
"They've got to start again, and the new coach - whoever that may be - has got to start again. I really do feel that it's another two, three, four steps back."
Paul Merson - X
"Just hearing the news about Pochettino, cannot believe he's gone - cannot believe. I mean, whoever's making this decision is - just, how are you going to replace him?
"Just got the team going, went on a great run, got into Europe, got into sixth in the league from where they were and he's just got this team playing.
"It's madness. I cannot, cannot, cannot believe what I'm hearing."
John Terry - Instagram
"Gutted to see @pochettino [Mauricio Pochettino] @jpp_71 [Jesus Perez, assist] @sebpochettino [Sebastian Pochettino, son and sports scientist] Leave. I just hope we don't sign or sell any players until we get a manager in. [thought bubble emoji]."
Emmanuel Petit - BoyleSports
"Mauricio Pochettino has been unhappy and hasn’t looked himself recently, but I think he’s frustrated about how the season has panned out and it’s no surprise that he’s gone.
"I saw him walk into the dressing room early and not do the lap of honour and I think he has found the pressure hard to handle this season, as well as his staff.
"I know they finished sixth but I think he knows he could have done do so much better. It’s quite a strange atmosphere at the end of the season and maybe he’s thinking he could have done some stuff differently.
"The board, however, should have given him much more time and him leaving is a bad indictment on them.
"Boehly needs to fix up and stop changing managers. It’s a mess.
"Poch still had one year on his contract and I know there is a review, but who is going to come to Chelsea, Tuchel? Tuchel has declined in value in the last few seasons."
Petit was speaking on behalf of BoyleSports, who offer the latest Euro 2024 betting.