By Frank Dalleres
Chelsea have confirmed the appointment of former Tottenham Hotspur and Paris Saint-Germain manager Mauricio Pochettino.
The Argentinian, who has also managed Southampton and Espanyol, has agreed a two-year contract which will start on 1 July.
“Chelsea Football Club is pleased to confirm Mauricio Pochettino will become head coach of the men’s team from the beginning of the 2023/24 season,” the Blues said.
“The Argentine will begin his new role on 1 July 2023 on a two-year contract, with a club option of a further year.”
Chelsea’s co-sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley said: “Mauricio’s experience, standards of excellence, leadership qualities and character will serve Chelsea Football Club well as we move forward.
“He is a winning coach, who has worked at the highest levels, in multiple leagues and languages. His ethos, tactical approach and commitment to development all made him the exceptional candidate.”
Pochettino, 51, will be Chelsea’s third permanent manager in a year, following the sacked Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter.
Frank Lampard and Bruno Saltor also both had short interim spells in charge as the Blues suffered their lowest points total of the Premier League era.
Pochettino led Tottenham to a Champions League final and turned them into regulars in Europe’s top competition in a five-year spell that ended in 2019.
He joined PSG, one of his former clubs as a player in January 2021 and won the French league title with them the following season but left that summer.
Pochettino faces a big job at Stamford Bridge following a season of turmoil sparked by Roman Abramovich’s forced sale of the club a year ago.
A consortium led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital spent more than £500m on new players and the costly hiring of Potter and his coaching team from Brighton but saw the club suffer their worst points tally of the Premier League era – 44 – as they finished 12th in the table.
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