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      Chelsea still backing Pochettino despite Jose Mourinho waiting in wings but chiefs demand club qualify for Europe

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      CHELSEA are refusing to press the panic button on boss Mauricio Pochettino’s future — despite a woeful season.SunSport understands Poch’s job is safe, for now, as he prepares for an FA Cup fourth-round replay at Aston Villa tomorrow.
      Chelsea are ready to stick with Mauricio Pochettino for nowCredit: PA
      Todd Boehly has got through managers at the Bridge, with Bruno even having four games as caretaker
      The Argentine, 51, who admitted no one is safe following Sunday’s 4-2 hammering by Wolves, is under pressure to turn the club’s fortunes around with fans’ favourite Jose Mourinho available.
      Mourinho’s name was sung by Chelsea fans during the Stamford Bridge loss.
      And the once ‘Special One’, who won three Prem titles across two spells, is out of work after being sacked by Serie A side Roma.
      Club insiders insist Chelsea’s hierarchy are very calm but they do have the determination that their expensive squad should qualify for Europe this season.
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      The Blues have lost their last two matches in spectacular fashion — conceding EIGHT goals.
      Poch’s flops have slipped into the bottom half of the Premier League.
      Now they need a positive result against high-flying Villa to stop the rot.
      But Chelsea CAN make the Europa Conference League next term, if they win the Carabao Cup final against Liverpool on February 25 at Wembley.
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      Chelsea fans booed the team off at half and full- time and even joined in with taunts about Pochettino’s future from the Wolves supporters as they turned on their manager.
      Co-controlling owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali are concerned by recent form.
      ‘All bets are off’ at ‘madhouse’ Chelsea says Sun Sport’s Andy Dillon following defeat against Wolves
      But they are not enough to sack the third chief of their two year reign, at least for now.
      Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter were axed previously for failing to get the best out of the squad which the owners have spent more than £1billion assembling. More

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      Chelsea ‘fear sacking Pochettino could breach FFP rules as huge pay-off ex-Spurs boss would earn is revealed’

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      CHELSEA are allegedly worried that sacking Mauricio Pochettino could result in the club breaching Premier League spending rules.Owners Todd Boehly and Clearlake have splashed out over £1BILLION on new players since taking over in the summer of 2022.
      Pressure is mounting on Mauricio Pochettino at ChelseaCredit: PA
      Boehly is getting through them, and even had Bruno Saltori as caretaker for four games after Potter was axed
      It was hoped that huge outlay would help ensure a return to the Champions League, along with the financial rewards that brings.
      But they currently sit in the bottom half of the table after the dismal 4-2 home defeat to Wolves.
      Despite reaching the Carabao Cup final, where they will take on Liverpool, fans have turned on boss Pochettino after their dire displays.
      There have been calls for Jose Mourinho to return to Stamford Bridge for a third time as pressure mounts on the Argentine.
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      But Pochettino still has 18 months remaining on his deal.
      And now the Daily Mail has claimed that serious financial concerns over sacking Pochettino have emerged as a significant factor.
      They state that axing him and his large backroom team would cost over £10m with any pre-June pay-off counting towards the Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) for this season.
      Chelsea are already struggling considering their massive transfer outlay and their case was not helped by failing to offload home-grown talents such as Armando Broja and Trevoh Chalobah on a permanent basis last term.
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      Rules state that clubs can lose £105m max over a three-year-period.
      There are a number of exceptions clubs can use to help – but severance pay to sacked managers is not included.
      Boehly and the rest of the ownership group have already shelled out over £20m in compensation in getting rid of Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter.
      What next for Jose Mourinho? Dave Kidd takes a look at The Special One’s options
      Todd Boehly has already forked out a fortune in compensation to axed managersCredit: Getty More

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      Chelsea fans take anger at Pochettino to Darts Masters as Van Gerwen opponent is welcomed with ‘clown’ sign

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      FANS pleading for Mauricio Pochettino to check out of Stamford Bridge took their protests to the final of the Cazoo Darts Masters.Banners calling the Blues’ boss a “clown” were held up as Englishman Stephen Bunting came out to face Michael van Gerwen.
      Posters venting frustration at Chelsea chief Mauricio Pochettino were unveiled as darts ace Stephen Bunting walked out for his special night
      Pochettino suffered during Chelsea’s 4-2 home loss against Wolves and the response from angry supporters extended to the Cazoo Darts MastersCredit: Alamy
      The anti-Poch message appeared to have been hastily scrawled
      Sunday’s 4-2 home defeat against Wolves left Chelsea 11th in the Premier League – despite Pochettino spending around £450million on new signings last summer.
      Supporters were hardly reassured afterwards – as the Argentinian promised the Blues would not go down rather than pledge an unlikely push for a European spot.
      And after Chelsea conceded four goals in successive league games for the first time since 1989, Poch said: “It is like everything is going wrong.”
      Defender Thiago Silva’s wife Bella didn’t help by posting on Instagram: “It’s time to change. If you wait any longer it will be too late.”
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      And discontent over Pochettino’s record then spread from Stamford Bridge to Milton Keynes – for Sunday’s big night at the oche.
      Instead of celebrating an expected victory over Wolves with Bunting, Chelsea fans bemoaned a surprise defeat to the mid-table Midlanders with banners – as they unveiled “Poch is a clown” posters at the darts event live on TV.
      Bunting himself was far from put off as he rounded off his inspired tournament by beating three-time world champ Van Gerwen 11-7.
      That gave the St Helens hurler, 38, his first ever televised PDC title.
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      Bunting hammered Peter Wright 10-2, Nathan Aspinall 11-1 and new world king Luke Humphries 10-7 before notching only his fourth triumph in 26 attempts against MVG.
      The English ace said: “I’m lost for words… This just shows my hard work is paying off, and it’s a great start to the season. 
      Under-fire Mauricio Pochettino speaks out after Chelsea hammered 4-2 by Wolves
      “Michael is a multiple world champion. He’s a fantastic player.
      “That is where I want to get my game back to so let’s see what happens in the future, but I really think I deserve this trophy.
      “My main aim when I moved over from the BDO was to win big titles, but you’re playing the best of the best, and you’re going to be pushed all the way.”
      Pochettino might hope some of Bunting’s transformed fortune rubs off on him.
      But he won’t want to get what the weekend hero has for a nickname – The Bullet. More

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      Only Jose Mourinho can sort Chelsea out, Pochettino has failed and will get hammered in the Carabao Cup final

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      IT IS CLEAR Mauricio Pochettino at Chelsea is not working and that the club is in a malaise.Only one man can change that: Jose Mourinho.
      Jose Mourinho is the only man that can change ChelseaCredit: Getty

      For most of the past two decades Chelsea have had a win-at-all-costs mentality.
      The players have been strong – physically and mentally – and the football has been effective and efficient.
      Players like John Terry, Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba and Diego Costa were beloved at Stamford Bridge – and hated everywhere else.
      However, post-Roman Abramovich’s era, Chelsea feel like a club without an identity on or off the pitch.
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      Chelsea doesn’t feel like Chelsea anymore. Reappointing Mourinho would immediately give us that identity back.
      Despite managing great clubs like Real Madrid, Inter Milan and Manchester United, when you think of Mourinho, you think of Chelsea.
      It was Mourinho who established this identity in his first spell as manager, three years in which he won two Premier League titles, two League Cups and an FA Cup.
      Much is made of the third season of his second spell where things went spectacularly wrong, but in the second season he won a third Premier League title and another League Cup.
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      In the first he took Chelsea to the semi finals of the Champions League, achievements that look a million miles away from the current position at Stamford Bridge.
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      He is a serial winner and has proved this throughout his career.
      Mourinho is also a charismatic leader, and while there are some talented young footballers at Stamford Bridge, there is a dearth of talismanic figures at the club for fans to hang our hopes on.
      Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino APOLOGISES to fuming fans after watching his side thumped by Wolves
      Critics of Mourinho will say his style of football is from a bygone era, that the game has evolved through the tactics of Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp.
      But anyone watching Chelsea under Pochettino and Graham Potter would struggle to find any kind of style of football at all.
      Everyone knows how Mourinho is going to set up. Ask people to describe how Chelsea play under Pochettino… they will struggle.
      The League Cup final is looming large at the end of the month, and as well as being an important trophy in its own right, it is the only realistic chance of European football next season.
      Under Pochettino there is no chance we will win it.
      With serial winner and talismanic leader Mourinho in charge we might. Bring him home.

      Why Chelsea must STICK with PochTODD BOEHLY would be a fool to sack Mauricio Pochettino before this month’s Carabao Cup Final, SunSport’s Chelsea correspondent Andy Dillon writes.
      Todd Boehly would be a fool to sack Mauricio Pochettino before this month’s Carabao Cup Final.
      But then all common sense went out of the window along with the personal effects of three other managers since the American chairman took over Chelsea less than two years ago.
      Boehly and his pal Behdad Eghbali bought Chelsea for £2.5bn in May 2022 and promised to invest a further £1.75bn in revolutionising the entire squad.
      They have certainly done that. Pochettino is famed for his ability to develop young players but is getting nowhere fast with the costly collection of individuals dumped on him by Chelsea’s transfer department
      Getting them to the Carabao Cup final on February 25 is a miracle. That they look destined to get ripped apart by Liverpool at Wembley is another matter.
      Pochettino admits his job is not safe. But one thing is for sure, he will not quit. As much as some of those Chelsea fans calling for his head in Sunday’s humiliating 4-2 home defeat by Wolves would like.
      They were also singing for former owner Roman Abramovich – so Boehly is not safe either. 
      The deposed Russian, now in exile, is always the person of first resort that a bunch of supporters used to winning big things every year reach for when times are tough. It won’t happen so the fans need to get used to that idea. More

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      Frank Lampard tipped to become new Chelsea women’s manager just eight months after leaving Stamford Bridge

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      FRANK LAMPARD has been tipped to become the next Chelsea women’s manager.Legendary boss Emma Hayes will leave Stamford Bridge at the end of the season to take over as USA women’s head coach.
      Frank Lampard has been tipped to return to ChelseaCredit: Getty
      Lampard has been tipped to replace Chelsea women’s boss Emma HayesCredit: Rex
      Chelsea are rigorously looking for a new women’s managerCredit: Rex
      Izzy Christiansen is adamant Lampard would be the perfect candidateCredit: Getty
      That will cap off a glittering 12-year stint for Hayes who won a staggering six Women’s Super League titles, five Women’s FA Cups, two Continental Cups, the Spring Series and the Community Shield.
      The Blues are now rigorously searching for the 47-year-old’s replacement, who will surely have some massive boots to fill.
      However, former England international Izzy Christiansen is adamant Lampard would be the perfect candidate.
      That is because the men’s team’s record goalscorer knows the club inside out and his character would lead to a smooth transition to a new and prosperous era.
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      Christiansen told Live Score: “I do have a name in mind but I’ve never heard anyone throw it out there… Frank Lampard.
      “He’s somebody who knows the club inside out. From my experiences at Everton, listening to him speak, he’s the right type of character.
      “His level of communication and knowledge of the game could be really effective and I think you’ve got someone well accustomed with what it means to be Chelsea.
      “I don’t have any knowledge on whether he’d want it or not but it makes sense to me.
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      “To be honest, I sit in a party where it doesn’t have to be a female, doesn’t have to be a male — it just needs to be the right person for the job.
      “There’s no gain in Chelsea going, ‘Right, let’s pigeonhole this, it has to be a female’.
      Frank Lampard reveals who is blocking Mason Mount from thriving at Man Utd and slams club for lack of plan
      “If they want to continue or attempt to continue the dominance they’ve had domestically, it has to be the correct appointment.”
      That would mark Lampard’s third return to Stamford Bridge after his stunning 13-year playing career came to an end in 2014.
      The legendary midfielder first came back as manager in 2019 and enjoyed a successful debut season as the Blues finished fourth despite a transfer embargo.
      However, the 45-year-old tactician’s second season was marred by poor results and he was swiftly replaced by Thomas Tuchel, who went on to win the Champions League.
      Lampard returned as caretaker boss in April for an abysmal second stint that saw him losing eight out of 11 matches, of which he won only one before his departure in June. More

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      Sacking Pochettino for Mourinho would be utterly ridiculous, but Chelsea might just be crazy enough to do it

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      TODD BOEHLY would be a fool to sack Mauricio Pochettino before this month’s Carabao Cup Final.But then all common sense went out of the window along with the personal effects of three other managers since the American chairman took over Chelsea less than two years ago.
      Chelsea shouldn’t bring Jose Mourinho back to replace Mauricio PochettinoCredit: Rex
      Chelsea manager Pochettino has come under fire amid a turbulent campaignCredit: Getty
      Anyway, who would be daft enough to bin their boss in the run up to a Wembley final?
      Tottenham did it to Jose Mourinho in 2021 and it proved a disaster. Chelsea’s specialist subject at the moment.
      Mourinho is now out of work once more and already making sure his mug is getting pictured at football grounds around Europe.
      Take a straw poll of Chelsea fans today and bet the majority would take back the man who won them three Premier League titles and wave goodbye to Pochettino.
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      It would be utterly ridiculous for him to come back for a third time but if there is one man mad enough and one club crazy enough to go for it, it is The Special One and Chelsea.
      But even he might baulk at the challenge of trying to turn this club around.
      Thomas Tuchel, Graham Potter, Frank Lampard all tried and failed to get a tune out of the most expensive squad in football history.
      A £1 billion orchestra hitting duff notes whoever is leading them. Makes you wonder whether it’s the players, the conductor or the people who own the concert hall who are to blame.
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      German Tommy Tuchel lasted exactly 100 days before getting Das Boot. Potter survived seven months and Lampard’s 11 games as caretaker boss are best consigned to memory.
      Chelsea’s greatest ever goalscorer and serial-winner left scratching his head at the way his club’s once-formidable character had been deconstructed in the space of 12 months.
      Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino APOLOGISES to fuming fans after watching his side thumped by Wolves
      Boehly and his pal Behdad Eghbali bought Chelsea for £2.5bn in May 2022 and promised to invest a further £1.75bn in revolutionising the entire squad.
      They have certainly done that. Pochettino is famed for his ability to develop young players but is getting nowhere fast with the costly collection of individuals dumped on him by Chelsea’s transfer department.
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      Mourinho enjoyed immense success as Chelsea manager
      Getting them to the Carabao Cup final on February 25 is a miracle. That they look destined to get ripped apart by Liverpool at Wembley is another matter.
      Pochettino admits his job is not safe. But one thing is for sure, he will not quit. As much as some of those Chelsea fans calling for his head in Sunday’s humiliating 4-2 home defeat by Wolves would like.
      They were also singing for former owner Roman Abramovich – so Boehly is not safe either. 
      The deposed Russian, now in exile, is always the person of first resort that a bunch of supporters used to winning big things every year reach for when times are tough.
      Pochettino has struggled during his debut campaign as Chelsea boss
      It won’t happen so the fans need to get used to that idea. 
      The Return (again) Of The Special One equally has the ring of a bad movie about it. Think Fast And The Furious XII or wherever we are at now.
      But when it comes to plugging dud films, that’s already right up Boehly’s street.
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      Reviews of recently released Boehly-backed Argylle – a cheesy spy thriller that has been universally panned – point to that.
      Incidentally, Argylle is meant to be part of a trilogy, if it makes it past the first episode. Jose III sounds equally doomed to fail but at least it would be entertaining.
      A bid for Mourinho by Chelsea owner Todd Boehly can’t be ruled outCredit: Rex More

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      Why winning the Carabao Cup could be the worst thing Pochettino does at Chelsea, thanks to little known rule

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      MAURICIO POCHETTINO knows his Chelsea future could rest on this month’s Carabao Cup Final against Liverpool – if he lasts that long.But the Blues hierarchy might privately wonder if a Wembley win could end up causing the club MORE financial problems than defeat against Jurgen Klopp’s side.
      Mauricio Pochettino is fighting to keep his Chelsea jobCredit: Getty
      Todd Boehly faces financial woes at ChelseaCredit: Rex
      Victory on February 25 would earn Pochettino his first piece of silverware in English football after his spate of near-misses at Spurs.
      It would also ensure that the Blues would be back in Europe next season – but only in the Conference League.
      And that is where the money men inside Stamford Bridge could well be starting to get more than slightly concerned.
      Financial analysts including former Manchester City executive Stefan Borsson have already predicted that Chelsea will have to sell players in the six week gap between the end of the season and the close of the football financial year on June 30 to avoid breaching Premier League Profitability and Sustainability Rules.
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      Those regulations give clubs leeway to make “allowable losses” of £105m over three seasons.
      The latest figures from accountants Deloitte estimated Chelsea’s annual wage bill at £350m, while their current “amortisation costs” of transfers is believed to be in the realm of £180m-plus heading into next year.
      Chelsea are already likely to earn at least £17m less in Prem TV money than they had envisaged.
      A top six place would be worth around £157m compared to the £140m if they remain in their current 11th position.
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      Then you can factor in two years of missing out of at least £75m in Champions League revenue.
      But more of a concern is that qualifying for Europe would mean Chelsea having to meet Uefa’s far MORE stringent financial rules – or face significant penalties.
      ‘All bets are off’ at ‘madhouse’ Chelsea says Sun Sport’s Andy Dillon following defeat against Wolves
      Under Uefa rules, introduced this season, clubs competing in any competition next term will be restricted to spending a maximum 80 per cent of their revenues on wages and transfers.
      Chelsea’s income is likely to fall to below £450m this season and next, with the Conference League worth no more than a maximum £15m if a team wins every game.
      Assuming that £450m income figure, Chelsea will not be allowed to spend more than £360m – which, given their current wage-bill, leaves just £10m to play with.
      In addition, Uefa’s FFP regulations, which will be a two year calculation next season, will only allow losses of £34m across 2023 and 2024, with calculation now done on a calendar year basis.

      It makes the prospect of Chelsea embarking on another huge summer spending spree, whoever is the manager, far less likely.
      Because the Blues regime amortised the transfer fees of the majority of their recruits over the past 18 months across up to eight seasons, they are carrying huge costs.
      Those sums still hanging over each player must be taken off the profits for any sales – so Chelsea would, for example, have to agree a deal of £38m for Marc Cucarella, £50m for injury-prone Wesley Fofana or £39m for unwanted Romelu Lukaku to avoid LOSING money of the departures.
      The “profit” point for both Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez is around £88m.
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      Prem rules are already forcing all clubs, including Chelsea, to rethink their approaches.
      But, bizarre as it sounds, getting into the Conference League might become a major nightmare – and effectively scotch their hopes of a summer of statement signings. More

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      Chelsea’s winning dressing rooms chewed up and spat out managers but Pochettino’s sorry lot can’t even control a ball

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      CHELSEA dressing rooms of old routinely chewed up and spat out managers while piling more trophies into the cabinet.This lot haven’t even got the presence of mind to control a ball, let alone a game or changing room.
      Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino’s star squad has not clickedCredit: Alamy
      Chelsea don’t have the personalities to step up in the dressing roomCredit: Alamy
      After another embarrassing collapse against Wolves, under-fire boss Mauricio Pochettino conceded his players are struggling to cope with the pressure of playing at Chelsea.
      They couldn’t recover after being rolled over by Liverpool in midweek and could not keep their heads, having seen Wolves equalise shortly after Cole Palmer had put the Blues ahead after a fine team move.
      Fingers were pointed between players throughout Sunday’s horror show but the most aggression shown by anyone in blue came from Moises Caicedo knocking seven bells out of a seat on the bench after he was hooked.
      While some players stayed to applaud the few remaining fans after the full-time whistle, only captain Ben Chilwell spoke to media, though only in interviews which are mandatory for rights holders.
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      Not one other Chelsea player had the guts to front up, no one else brave enough to apologise to the fans as their manager had to do.
      It is commonplace now for Premier League players to duck interviews after a defeat, but just because others do it does not mean it is the right thing to do. Fans are furious, someone must step up.
      Long gone are the days of John Terry and Frank Lampard facing the music after disappointing results, taking responsibility and speaking to supporters, vowing to put things right.
      Blues fans know little about the wide cast of young players who have washed into their club in the past two years. It is no wonder there is a disconnect.
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      The ownership can throw all the gimmicks they like at the club, DJs welcoming players off the bus or a “once-in-a-lifetime” fan experience to “high-five the players as they walk down the special blue carpet”. Some accountability would do.
      Chelsea have always burned through managers at an alarming rate, 13 came and went under Roman Abramovich’s near two-decade rein, but there were also 21 trophies.
      ‘All bets are off’ at ‘madhouse’ Chelsea says Sun Sport’s Andy Dillon following defeat against Wolves
      Under Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital’s guidance there have already been four managers, no trophies and over a £1billion carelessly spent to take the club backwards.
      Speculation is now rife over when Pochettino will join the list of former Blues managers, but it cannot always be the manager’s fault.
      Chelsea have a lot to learn from the winning dressing room of oldCredit: Chelsea FC
      Chilwell, Thiago Silva and Raheem Sterling aside, Chelsea’s starting XI on Sunday’s 4-2 loss at Wolves was a side largely littered with potential yet to be fulfilled.
      Neither of Chelsea’s £100m-plus midfielders, Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez, could get a grip on the game and settle things down. Conor Gallagher struggled but at least put in a big tackle and picked a fight with Gary O’Neil to show supporters he gave a jot.
      Terry, Chelsea’s legendary captain who watched their humbling at Liverpool last week from the away end, has previously denied that the leadership group he was part of were the ones in charge ahead of managers.
      But the former England captain says it was the likes of him, Lampard, Ashley Cole, Didier Drogba and Petr Cech who did most of the manager’s work when it came to simple standards.
      He said: “If someone wasn’t to the level or the standards that we demanded, as Chelsea football club, then me, Ash, Frank, Didier, Pete would tell them.
      “If people didn’t continue to be at those standards, before the manager even had to say anything, we would nip it in the bud.”
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      There are few in the squad now fans would trust to repeat those messages.
      Chelsea’s current crop do not need to return to the days of being a group who see off managers on a regular basis in order to be successful, but some semblance of a winning mentality and a refusal to accept the mess they are in would be a start. More