See how Cole Palmer could sack Pochettino as sack pressure continues
Amidst mounting pressure to fire Chelsea Cole Palmer, Mauricio Pochettino faces criticism for his “crazy” allegation.
Before Chelsea’s 5-0 loss against Arsenal, Michail Antonio and Tom Cairney expressed their shock at Mauricio Pochettino’s pre-match remarks. The Argentine’s remarks came under scrutiny when he exhorted his team to rise above the title of “Cole Palmer FC” and demonstrate their versatility.
Tuesday night’s strong performance by Arsenal against their London rivals increased the pressure on Manchester City in the title pursuit. Leandro Trossard scored the first goal in less than four minutes, and Chelsea wasted several good chances to equalize the game before halftime.
Arsenal delivered a dominant performance against their London rivals on Tuesday night, intensifying the pressure on Manchester City in the title chase. Leandro Trossard was quick off the mark, netting the opener within four minutes, while Chelsea missed key opportunities to level the score before the break.
The second half saw Kai Havertz and Ben White both bagging braces, piling on the misery for the Blues, as Arteta’s men took full advantage of Chelsea’s defensive frailties to potentially boost their goal difference even further.
Pochettino’s comments about Palmer have thus been met with confusion, especially given the team’s over-reliance on the former Manchester City talent. On Monday, the ex-Spurs boss stated: “It is a good challenge if Palmer is not available tomorrow. It’s a good challenge for his teammates or those in a similar position.”
“If I were them, I would be motivated to go there tomorrow and show that this is Chelsea Football Club, not Cole Palmer Football Club.”
West Ham star Antonio laughed at how the 48 hours panned out when speaking on The Footballer’s Football Podcast, saying: “What is crazy is the gaffer comes out and saying Cole Palmer FC, and then he gets ill, and this 5-0, it can’t be written any better than that.”
Cairney added that he felt Pochettino’s remarks may not have been the most inspiring for the team. He said: “I’m surprised he said that in his pre-match thing anyway to be fair. Are we Cole Palmer FC?
“I don’t think you can say that anyway. I don’t think I’ve ever heard Pep (Guardiola) say when he had (Lionel) Messi, we’re just a Messi team. ”
Chelsea will be hoping to bounce back to form against high-flying Aston Villa this weekend, and if Palmer is fit enough to make his mark on the contest then questions will certainly be raised about where the team would be in the table without the brilliance of the 21 year old.