Chelsea are reportedly keen on hiring Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino should Maurizio Sarri lose his job.
Sarri, the former Napoli boss, was only hired last summer but finds himself under pressure following a period of poor form.
Serious questions were raised after Wednesday’s 4-0 defeat by Bournemouth, and the pressure on Sarri has hardly eased despite Chelsea thrashing Huddersfield on Saturday.
The Express claim Chelsea will battle Manchester United for Pochettino this summer, while Real Madrid are also known admirers of the Argentine.
But how could the Blues line-up under Pochettino? talkSPORT.com take a look below…
Pochettino has favoured a 4-2-3-1 system throughout his career, but since taking charge of Spurs he has become much more liberal with utilising alternate structures.
This season Tottenham have started matches in seven different systems, playing primarily in a 4-2-3-1 and a 4-4-2 diamond, but also lining up in a 4-3-2-1, a traditional 4-4-2, and various different three-at-the-back formations.
The north Londoners are one of the most versatile teams in the Premier League on a match-by-match basis, but Chelsea take the title over the course of the last few years.
They played a 4-2-3-1 under Jose Mourinho before switching to a successful 3-4-3 when Antonio Conte was manager, while Sarri has stuck rigidly to the 4-3-3 system used to such success during his time at Napoli.
The majority of Chelsea’s squad have proven adept at alternating between these formations with little adaptation time necessary, so Pochettino would have no trouble remaining tactically fluid were he to become the Stamford Bridge club’s next manager.
The four-man defence Pochettino favours is currently used by Sarri, and it is likely he would stick with the back line the Blues are employing this season – David Luiz and Antonio Rudiger in central defence, flanked by Cesar Azplicueta on the right and Marcos Alonso on the left.
Emerson is well suited to Pochettino’s high-pressing system so could flourish if chosen ahead of Alonso at left-back, while he could also favour Andreas Christensen over Luiz simply due to the Dane’s youth and consistency; Luiz is clearly the better defender, but remains prone to the occasional lapse in concentration.
The trio of Luiz, Rudiger and Christensen could also all start if Pochettino decided upon a three-man defence, as all three have proven their ability in a three-at-the-back system when playing under Conte.
Azpilicueta also played in central defence under Conte, but would likely be forced to play at right wing-back under Pochettino unless a new player is brought to Chelsea who is more natural in the position; Victor Moses, who played there under Conte, left Stamford Bridge on loan last month.
Alonso and Emerson are so attacking they are more suited to playing at wing-back than at full-back, as has been proven recently when comparing their performances this season with those put in last season.
Moving further up the pitch, Pochettino likes to play a ball-playing midfielder alongside more of a destroyer, with Harry Winks often partnered with Moussa Sissoko or Eric Dier.
N’Golo Kante and Jorginho are perfectly suited to these roles, and Pochettino’s arrival would be great for the former as he would return to his best position having been forced to play an unnatural attacking role under Sarri.
Christian Eriksen’s role for Tottenham is one Pochettino would struggle to replicate if he became Chelsea manager. The Denmark international is often fielded in various positions, including shuttling midfield in a diamond, central midfield in a 3-1-4-2, and, his natural role, number 10.
But despite taking up all these positions on the field, Eriksen’s approach to the game remains similar; he drifts in and out of proceedings, finding pockets of space from which he can influence the match at his own pace.
Eden Hazard could do the same for Chelsea, and is certainly the most natural Eriksen alternative were he fielded in attacking midfield. However, the Belgium forward has struggled to impress when playing centrally on previous occasions, and a player more like Ross Barkley – or Mateo Kovacic if he signs for Chelsea permanently – would probably do a better job in the deeper positions Eriksen takes up.
In attack, Chelsea share many similarities with Tottenham – except when it comes to two specific players.
Lucas Moura, Erik Lamela and Heung-Min Son all have doppelgangers in the Chelsea squad, with Pedro sharing Lucas’ directness and eye for goal, Willian, like Lamela, more skilful and individual, and Hazard being a goalscoring and chance-creating behemoth as Son has proven to be for Spurs.
However, Chelsea do not have a striker as reliable as Harry Kane, and probably won’t have one unless they do the impossible and actually sign the England captain from Tottenham. Gonzalo Higuain scored twice in Saturday’s thrashing of Huddersfield, but he is nothing more than a short-term fix, and Chelsea’s recent history of buying strikers suggests they are unlikely to sign any sort of consistent goal-getter any time soon.
Furthermore, the Blues cannot call upon a midfielder as prolific as Dele Alli.
Sarri has struggled this term as Chelsea do not have a goalscoring midfielder like the one he could call upon at Napoli, Marek Hamsik, and Pochettino would have to find a player who can replicate Alli’s output in the final third.
Barkley may be able to do that, and he’s certainly displayed an eye for goal on previous occasions, but he has some way to go to even be fit to lace Alli’s boots.
Pochettino is clearly one of the best managers in the Premier League, and it is no surprise Chelsea would want him if the decision to hire Sarri turns out to be a bad one.
Chelsea’s squad would clearly suit Pochettino’s tactics, while he is versatile enough to adapt his systems to get the best out of the Blues in the areas in which they do not match up to his footballing ideals.
However, Chelsea will likely have to fight Manchester United and Real Madrid to hire Pochettino, while he would risk the ire of the Tottenham faithful were he to turn his back on Spurs to join their fierce London rivals.