Pochettino Needs to Restore Confidence to Stamford Bridge Ahead of City’s Game

Chelsea have won just one league game at Stamford Bridge under Mauricio Pochettino despite the improvement in their away form. Meanwhile, they will need a big win to get going and get the fans behind them in subsequent home matches.

With their next home task billed against Manchester City, Pochettino and his boys must be determined to salvage their Citizens’ riots. However, their past records seem unconvincing as they have lost their last four encounters against Manchester City. And in recent times, they have dropped their last five straight games against any team in the league.

With just one day remaining on the Cobham training fields, Pochettino must devise a strategy that will see Chelsea upset Manchester City against all odds. Despite setbacks against Brentford and Arsenal, Chelsea has recently experienced a respectable run of results, including victories over Blackburn Rovers, Burnley, and Tottenham Hotspur.

Also, following Cole Palmer’s £40 million (potentially £42.5 million) transfer to Stamford Bridge, he has played across the attacking line. Though Palmer and Moises Caicedo have been excellent players, Pochettino’s team will need to play at full strength if they are to defeat the Premier League winners.

Palmer has played more Premier League games for Chelsea than he did for his whole stint at Manchester City- and has assumed the role of their first-choice penalty taker. Given he’s spent little time adapting to life at Chelsea, Mauricio Pochettino was asked if he reminded him of anyone and after a little hesitation stated he might be another version of World Cup winner Angel Di Maria.

Pochettino told reporters: “He is a clever guy that adapted really quick. We are building the team and he takes advantage to see the situation and to show character and personality. He needs to improve but special for him to play against his former teammates and club. He is more like Angel Di Maria.”

Palmer has adapted to Chelsea life faster than most players. After spending two months in west London, the 21-year-old—who moved from Manchester City on the transfer deadline—has proven to be an unstoppable talent and has already assumed responsibility for taking penalties. He has emerged as Chelsea’s main creative outlet in many ways, and in his 11 Blues games, he has contributed three goals and four assists.

In other news, the rumour mill is still going strong even though the summer transfer market has closed. While there are still many rumours linking Victor Osimhen to Chelsea, it seems like the hunt for a new custodian has come to an end.

Before leaving for the Cobham training pitch on Friday afternoon, or perhaps after, Lavia uploaded a selfie to his Instagram story. He hasn’t made his Blues debut yet and has been dealing with an ankle injury ever since moving to Stamford Bridge. The Belgian’s rehabilitation journey took a significant turn for the worst last month, delaying his comeback until late November or possibly December.

While a number of young players will have their future performance evaluated, players like Raheem Sterling and Marc Cucurella took time to establish themselves in the team. The money paid for Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo may have given the impression that their prior clubs were victors.