Chelsea players have reportedly given the green light to the club appointing Mauricio Pochettino as their new head coach and are excited at the prospect of working under the Argentine.
The Blues' co-owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali have been busy whittling down their list of candidates as they search for a permanent successor to Graham Potter, who was sacked earlier this month.
Frank Lampard returned to Stamford Bridge on an interim basis until the end of the season, but having lost each of his first four games in charge, his stay will not be made permanent for a second time.
As well as Pochettino, the likes of Luis Enrique and Julian Nagelsmann were also considered top candidates for the job, but both men are now understood to be out of the running.
As a result, Pochettino quickly became Chelsea's number one target, and according to The Telegraph, the Blues' squad have given the former Tottenham Hotspur and Paris Saint-Germain head coach their seal of approval.
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Pochettino has been away from the dugout since being sacked by PSG at the end of the 2021-22 season, despite reclaiming the Ligue 1 title from Lille with four games to spare.
The 51-year-old is understood to have held several rounds of positive talks with Blues directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart, and the players would welcome the chance to work under Pochettino's wing.
The report adds that Chelsea's English contingent have received glowing reviews from teammates who have been coached by Pochettino, specifically hailing his man-management and motivational skills.
The Blues were apparently fearful of Tottenham Hotspur making an approach to coax Pochettino back to North London, as Daniel Levy works to find a replacement for Antonio Conte, who left his role only days before Potter was sacked.
However, Spurs are not believed to be considering a Pochettino homecoming and are instead prioritising talks with Nagelsmann after the German ended his interest in joining Chelsea.
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The Blues are therefore leading the Premier League race to bring Pochettino back to England, although the Argentine would also make time for Real Madrid if they made an eleventh-hour approach.
Should talks with Pochettino ultimately collapse, Chelsea have an extensive list of backup options, including Vincent Kompany, Ange Postecoglou, Ruben Amorim and Arne Slot.
Pochettino boasts a record of 132 wins, 61 draws and 63 defeats from his 256 Premier League games in charge of Spurs and Southampton, leading the former to the Champions League final in 2019.
The former Espanyol coach was ruthlessly sacked by Tottenham just six months after taking them to the European showpiece event, and the Lilywhites failed with an attempt to re-hire him in 2021 as Jose Mourinho's successor.
Chelsea, who apparently want to confirm a new permanent manager within the next 10 days, occupy 11th place in the Premier League table and are back in action at home to West London rivals Brentford on Wednesday.
Ben Knapton
