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Mauricio Pochettino is asking for a balanced view on the challenges facing his Chelsea team and emphasizes that he cannot stress too much about their recent disappointing outcomes.
The 51-year-old’s arrival in the summer has resulted in 10 losses for the team in the league, including Sunday’s 4-2 defeat against Wolves at home. This has led to the first audible expressions of dissatisfaction from fans towards the manager.
Later, Pochettino seemed to imply that he thought the players were inadequate in stopping the decline of the club. However, he has since clarified that he was only referring to their performance in the loss to Gary O’Neil’s team.
Wolves outpaced and outsmarted Chelsea, despite the latter having more possession of the ball. Wolves were consistently more dangerous and effortlessly broke through Chelsea’s defense, resulting in their first victory at Stamford Bridge in over 40 years.
The supporters near the dugout expressed their anger by booing the players off at half-time and again at the end of the game, as the Blues fell into the lower half of the Premier League standings.
Their previous fixture resulted in a timid 4-1 defeat at the hands of Liverpool.
Nevertheless, Pochettino stressed the significance of maintaining a sense of pleasure in his role as a coach, even during challenging moments.
He expressed that football is his passion, not his occupation. He added that although it may be referred to as a job, that is not the correct term. Football is a form of entertainment.
If I am not able to think in this manner, then I must consider other roles such as a sports director, CEO, or president.
As a coach, it is important for me to remember my purpose. We must not let outside factors affect us. Our main focus should be on playing football.
In order to have a successful mindset in football, it is important to feel mentally unburdened. External factors such as the stock market in New York or Tokyo, weather conditions, or the productivity of a farm should not impact your focus.
“I choose to keep my hair this way because I don’t let things I can’t control affect me. My only focus is on football, and making sure my players improve and have a strong foundation for winning games.”
If my farm doesn’t receive rain, it negatively impacts my business and causes stress. While it may lead to hair loss for others, I cannot afford to lose my hair as our team is not succeeding due to the competition being stronger.
Chelsea currently have 15 remaining league games left in the season and are only one spot higher in the standings compared to their previous season, which was widely recognized as a disastrous performance.
On Wednesday, they will be heading to Aston Villa for a replay of the FA Cup fourth round.
Pochettino stated, “Last year, I did not finish in 12th place. Chelsea did. Our squad has undergone many changes since then, so it is difficult to compare and make judgments about our current performance.”
“You can compare to try to damage, if you want to make a problem. But to analyse and put all the circumstances, I don’t think that before was better or was worse. It’s difficult to compare because we are in another project.”
Source: independent.co.uk