Pochettino's controversial Chelsea gamble backfired - and it could cost him job
For the majority of the last two decades or so, Chelsea have been a force to be reckoned with.
It may not have always been pretty, but more often than not the Blues got the job done. It became their brand, managers didn't get much time, and players would come and go regardless of how expensive, but one thing the expectant Stamford Bridge faithful could usually bank on was that there would be a trophy or two to celebrate come the end of the campaign.
Since 2005, when the Roman Abramovich era was still in its infancy, Chelsea have never gone more than two years without winning a trophy. That is until Todd Boehly and his Clearlake Capital consortium took over the owners' suite at the Bridge and the Blues' win-at-all-costs approach seems to have been lost somewhere along the way.
Nowadays, Mauricio Pochettino is at the helm. For all of the promise his Tottenham reign showed, the Argentine was sacked from his post in north London five years ago without a trophy to show for his efforts.
Knowing a return to the capital to take charge of London rivals Chelsea would burn plenty of bridges back at Spurs, Pochettino will be desperate to ensure he finally wins some silverware to justify the decision. This makes his tactics during extra-time of Sunday's Carabao Cup final defeat by Liverpool all the more confusing.
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After 90 minutes of drama but no goals, the game continued for another 30 minutes. Bear in mind, this was a Reds side without the attacking threat of Mohamed Salah, Diogo Jota, Darwin Nunez and Dominik Szoboszlai. They also couldn't rely on defenders like Trent Alexander-Arnold, or Andy Robertson, who played the full 90 but were taken off before extra time.
In other words, Liverpool were there for the taking. In place of their regulars were teenage talents like James McConnell, Bobby Clark and Jayden Danns - all 19 years of age. It felt like a golden opportunity for a Chelsea side who have lost all six of their last six trips to Wembley to get their hands on the first trophy of the Boehly regime.
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Mauricio Pochettino could barely believe his luck after Liverpool netted a late winner against ChelseaJamie Carragher and Gary Neville both made clear on commentary that they felt this was as good a chance as Chelsea were going to get to assert their dominance on a Reds side who looked tired and inexperienced. Instead, it was the Blues who spent the bulk of extra time on the back foot - and it came back to bite them.
Virgil van Dijk headed home from a corner with 118 minutes on the clock to break Chelsea hearts, with Pochettino looking particularly dejected in his technical area while Liverpool's staff wheeled away in celebration. Neville made clear he had "no sympathy" for the west Londoners and questioned the way they approached extra time.
And it is something Pochettino discussed after the game, dropping a bombshell in the process. He said: "The players started to lose their energy. The team felt maybe penalties would be good for us."
The remark did not go down well among the Chelsea fanbase and in truth, could also test the patience of those above Pochettino in the Stamford Bridge hierarchy. The owner has shown if there's one similarity he does share with Abramovich, it's a lack of patience, having already sacked Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter on either side of a Frank Lampard interim period.
Boehly could be forgiven for thinking he did not fork out more than £1billion on this ludicrously expensive squad just for the manager to gamble they could cling on for a penalty shootout against a Liverpool side with three teenagers in the line-up.
Wednesday's meeting with Leeds in the FA Cup now takes on a new level of importance. If the Blues are to slip up and be beaten by Championship opposition on their own patch, ending any chance of silverware this season for a third straight campaign, it would be hard to see Pochettino not meeting the same fate as his predecessors.
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