NEVILLE TALKS TOSH OVER DOSH
Pochettino rages at claim that Blues are ‘billion-pound bottlers’
MAURICIO Pochettino has blasted Chelsea’s critics for obsessing over their billion-pound outlay, adding that the owners are backing him after meeting with Behdad Eghbali in the aftermath of Sunday’s Carabao Cup final defeat by Liverpool.
It was a passionate press conference from Pochettino before facing Championship outfit Leeds in the fifth round of the FA Cup tonight — the competition which is their last chance of silverware this season and likeliest route into Europe.
The Argentine launched into a seven-minute monologue when asked about Gary Neville’s ‘ blue billion-pound bottle jobs’ jibe and branded the negativity ‘annoying’, adding that Liverpool and Manchester City do not get the same scrutiny.
‘ When Chelsea lose, it is always because of, because of, because of,’ Pochettino said of the £1billion references. ‘No, the circumstances of Chelsea are the circumstances of Chelsea. They (the owners) wanted to build something different.
‘It is only at the beginning. That’s why we cannot compare it with the past. Always it is Chelsea and it always appears “one billion” and you cannot fight against that idea.’
On Liverpool and City, Pochettino added: ‘ Nothing negative. It’s like, if you win, you win, if you lose, you lose. Nothing happens. But for Chelsea, it is completely different because of the pressure of that (£1bn). For me, it is unfair, but in saying that, I accept the opinions.’
Chelsea’s injury crisis worsened yesterday when it emerged that Christopher Nkunku is facing at least three weeks on the sidelines for an unspecified issue.
But Pochettino claims his job is safe for now. He met the club’s co- owners Todd Boehly and Eghbali at the game at Wembley, before sitting down with Eghbali in London later on Sunday evening.
‘I feel the support from them,’ Chelsea’s manager said. ‘I cannot lie to you. When I went up the steps at Wembley, I was so upset, nearly crying. I got a text later (from Boehly), a very, very nice text. Then I met Behdad two hours later.’
Asked if he will get time from them, Pochettino said: ‘ Why not? I am confident. It is not in my hands. We have a very good relationship. It is up to them after to trust or not. Always.
‘Of course we wanted to win the Carabao Cup. We want to win the FA Cup. We want to win the Premier League. Now it’s tough. Our reality is to see if we can qualify to play in Europe next season.’
Pochettino said reaching the cup final was an ‘amazing job’ and added: ‘ With time we are going to have an amazing team because we are young, we are learning, we are creating something that is starting to appear on the training ground.
‘Always it is about time. The problem is that we need time and patience to win games, and we need the patience from the owners to have the possibility to keep going.’