Mauricio Pochettino would not be drawn on whether he would push for Chelsea to reunite him with England captain Harry Kane as he was formally unveiled as manager at Stamford Bridge.

The pair enjoyed success during their days together at Tottenham, reaching the Champions League final in 2019, and the Argentinian was pressed on whether he would look to Kane to try and revive his new side’s ailing attack.

Chelsea scored only 38 league goals last season, their worst return in almost a hundred years, as they finished a dismal 12th in the Premier League.

They have already added RB Leipzig forward Christopher Nkunku and Nicolas Jackson from Villarreal, and the manager said the club are still looking to do more business to improve their front line.

But he stopped short of saying he would ask the club to bid for Kane, who scored 30 times in the league last season and, with Spurs not qualifying for Europe, has been the subject of interest from Bayern Munich.

“You are talking about one of the greatest strikers in the world,” said Pochettino. “I think it’s too unfair to talk (about a player at another club). The most important thing is that fans are not stupid. They are so clever. They know my relationship with him was always amazing.

“I saw him when he was young and grow up and achieve all that he was achieving. We have a great relationship.

“At the moment, we are thinking (in the transfer market) in a different way. We are not thinking that. We’re working hard to try to provide the squad with good quality.

“We are working on that and still we have time to work. For sure we are going to add players that can score and we are going to find the best way to play.”

The club have begun a significant overhaul of their squad since the transfer window re-opened, with players leaving to slim down the squad and trim the wage bill.

Mason Mount and N’Golo Kante have led an exodus of nine first-team players to depart so far, but the club remain in the market for recruits as they look to address last season’s crisis of form in front of goal.

“Football is really dynamic,” said Pochettino. “What we have today maybe tomorrow disappears. We need to be ready if we need more or not or maybe we go through the pre-season and we realise we need to improve in different positions or add more players that can score.

“It’s really dynamic and we’re going to assess every single day the situation.”

The manager added that Chelsea’s owners will need to check in with him before paying visits to the Stamford Bridge dressing room as he was formally unveiled as the club’s new manager.

Co-controlling owner Todd Boehly frequently entered the dressing room under successive head coaches last season, telling the players after a defeat to Brighton in April that their season had been “embarrassing.”

Pochettino began work at Cobham on Monday just over a month after he was confirmed as permanent successor to Graham Potter, who Boehly sacked just seven months after appointing him.

The Argentinian is tasked with resurrecting the club after they suffered their worst season in 29 years last campaign, finishing 12th and failing to mount a credible challenge for silverware despite the owner’s Clearlake Capital consortium forking out over £600million on transfers.

Pochettino said he felt it was his responsibility to create the kind of culture where people clearly understand their place and function in the wider collective.

“We need to understand that they own the football club,” he said when asked whether the hierarchy would be welcome on his watch to address the players post-match.

“We need to respect that. The thing is to talk about how we need to behave because that is an important thing.

“The culture of football in England is a lot to understand. My responsibility also is to help and to add our knowledge and capacity to create this culture where everyone knows how to behave in different situations.

“For me, more than welcome if the owner comes to the dressing room, to the training ground. But always they need to communicate with myself, I need to know, and to prepare the people to receive.

“In here (the dressing room) it’s really special in England. Maybe in another country it’s different, but here it’s this way.

“The manager has some influence in all football clubs, for the fans, for the players, for the staff and the media. Altogether we need to create this. We are there to guide all the people that are involved in this football club, to try to create the best atmosphere and try to work and perform in the best way.

“I am more than happy if they are close to us. But they are the owners. The players, the fans, the media – the coach is who decides how things are going to work in the dressing room, on the pitch, on the training ground.  Also with the sporting directors, we create the line to follow.”

Former captain John Terry tweeted on Friday that he has re-joined the club working with the academy.

The 42-year-old won five Premier League titles with Chelsea as well as the 2012 Champions League.

Elano believes Newcastle United "will become powerful in Europe" after they qualified for next season's Champions League.

The Magpies finished fourth in Eddie Howe's first full term at St James' Park, their highest top-flight finish since the 2002-03 campaign under Bobby Robson.

Howe was appointed in 2021 shortly after Newcastle were taken over by a Saudi-backed consortium with the club spending over £200million in the transfer market since, a number that is sure to increase in the upcoming window ahead of a busy fixture list next season.

Elano, who scored 14 goals in 62 Premier League appearances for Manchester City between 2007 and 2009, feels the huge financial backing for Howe should see them become major players in Europe.

"Things are getting much more equal," Elano told Stats Perform. "Especially the clubs that didn't have the structure of [Manchester] United, Arsenal, Chelsea, who were the winning clubs.

"Newcastle, for example, who are in the Champions League, are also a powerful club. And they will become powerful in Europe, because they have the money for that. It is a club with an absurd growth margin."

Elano revealed he wanted to wear Newcastle's colours after facing them and maintains the Magpies can catch up to the Premier League's elite clubs.

"I confess to you that I wanted to play for Newcastle," Elano added. "I played a few games against Newcastle and I saw the quality of the fans, the stadium and the structure of the club.

"In world football, today, whoever doesn't have the training structure, the staff, the club structure, will be left behind.

"If we look at the Premier League, Liverpool didn't fight for the title. Arsenal were six or seven points ahead and lost the title. [Manchester] United were almost out [of the Champions League] again. Chelsea are out of the next Champions League.

"So, the organisation and the project of each club needs consistent work. Otherwise, whether it's the Premier League or any other league, clubs will fall behind."

In a career that also saw him play for the likes of Shakhtar Donetsk and Santos, attacking midfielder Elano made 50 appearances for his national team Brazil between 2004 and 2011.

With fellow South American native Mauricio Pochettino being appointed at Chelsea after the Blues finished in the bottom half of the Premier League last season, Elano says the former Tottenham boss must be given time to succeed after a tumultuous spell at Stamford Bridge.

"I think he can be successful if they give him time to work," Elano said. "If they detected that he should be the coach, they should give him time.

"A player, in three or four months, can be sold for £100million. Because in three months you can score goals, put in brilliant performances, then someone sees you and takes you. Not the coach. The coach in three months is formatting the team, setting up the team with his ideas.

"You get a team of 20 players, each one is different, each one has his own characteristics. And the coach has to put this together. It takes time."

New Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino will find he has a daunting in-tray once he gets to work at Stamford Bridge as the Blues look to bounce back from the wreckage of this season.

The job presents as many opportunities as it does challenges and a coach of Pochettino’s charisma, calibre and character will relish trying to mould solutions out of the current malaise.

Here, the PA news agency looks at what the former Tottenham and Paris St Germain boss has to get to grips with.

Slim down the squad…

Successive managers have reaped the chaos of the new Chelsea ownership’s scattergun approach to recruitment during the last 12 months and a significant clear-out is needed if the squad is to be anything like manageable.

Apart from the obvious logistical headache of trying to organise training with a bloated group that exceeds 30, there is the effect on morale that having so much surplus and deadwood will have around Cobham.

There is clearly no sense in the manager and his staff investing time and attention during sessions in players who are unlikely to feature, particularly when those currently comprising the starting XI present next to no cohesion.

Pochettino needs to figure out quickly who of the current crop has a role to play in his rebuild and who can be put towards easing the Financial Fair Play pressure the club is under.

… but persuade Joao Felix to stay

It might seem counter-productive considering the above but convincing the on-loan winger to turn his six-month loan stay from Atletico Madrid into a permanent one will be key.

It will likely mean tossing another hefty transfer fee into an already nightmarish FFP calculation, but Felix has been one of few recruits under new owner Todd Boehly who has shown something close to his best, albeit not consistently.

He has six months of acclimatising to the Premier League under his belt and, like Enzo Fernandez, has the potential under the right manager to become one of the best in the world.

Don’t write off Aubameyang and Lukaku

Despite the fact that only four Premier League teams this season have fewer goals – 19th-placed Leicester have outscored them by 13 – there are two strikers on Chelsea’s books that between them have scored almost 600 goals at the top level.

It has not worked out so far for either Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Romelu Lukaku at Stamford Bridge, but nor has much else during the two years since the club paid £97.5million to bring in Lukaku – currently on loan at Inter Milan – and Aubameyang’s time has been even more chaotic.

If the problem until now has been one of relationships, personnel and the lack of a settled environment then a new manager and staff could go some of the way towards wiping the slate clean for both players.

There is also a buy-back option on Tammy Abraham about to come into effect that, considering his success at Roma, might also be worth looking at given the lack of firepower.

Give supporters back that old Chelsea swagger

Part of the reason Graham Potter never looked a natural fit at Stamford Bridge was an absence of the self-assurance bordering on arrogance that defined some of the club’s most successful managers.

Title-winners Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte oozed entitlement – even though in reality their swagger was hard earned – whilst Carlo Ancelotti exhibited a confident coolness.

To supporters, Chelsea’s image is just one more part of their identity next to the haul of trophies from the last 20 years.

Pochettino has the personality to satisfy certain of those requirements. Whether he can do it whilst matching the success of that glittering trio will be the true test.

Mauricio Pochettino has "everything to succeed" in his first season if appointed as Chelsea's new head coach, according to former Blues winger Willian.

Pochettino has been out of management since being sacked as Paris Saint-Germain boss at the end of last season, but he is reportedly close to taking over at Stamford Bridge ahead of next campaign.

His rumoured arrival comes at the end of a tumultuous season for Chelsea, who have sacked Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter on the way to their lowest-ever points tally in the Premier League era.

But Willian, who won two Premier League titles as well as the Europa League during his seven-year spell with the Blues, believes Pochettino is the man to bring success back to the club.

"He is a great manager," Willian told Stats Perform. "He did a great job while he was at Tottenham and he has everything to succeed.

"Chelsea is a giant club, it's a club that is always used to winning titles. Chelsea might not win anything one year, but the next year they'll be fighting for a title.

"Chelsea has been winning titles this way for a few years now, and sometimes they don't do well in a league, but they win a European trophy or a cup.

"Chelsea is a club that will always fight for titles, and I think they have everything to fight for a title again next year."

Chelsea have spent over £600million in the transfer market since Todd Boehly's consortium took control of the club, including £323m on acquiring eight players in the January window alone.

Willian feels the new signings will come good, adding: "I think the team has quality players.

"They have signed a lot of players, but you can see they have a lot of quality players and I think they have everything to succeed, yes."

Willian now plies his trade with Chelsea's west London rivals Fulham, who have secured a top-half finish in a successful first Premier League campaign following their promotion last term, sitting nine points above the Blues with one game remaining.

Willian remembers his time at Stamford Bridge fondly, though, claiming they were the best years of a career that has also included spells at Arsenal and Shakhtar Donetsk.

"Chelsea was the best moment of my career," Willian said. "It was almost eight years, I won titles, I was very happy.

"Even before I was there, I already dreamed of playing for Chelsea. I watched Chelsea games on TV and I had this dream of playing there, and I was able to make that dream come true.

"For me, those were the best years of my career. Those were incredible years."

Chelsea are closing in on Mauricio Pochettino as they attempt to land a long-term replacement for Graham Potter.

The PA news agency understands the Blues are in talks with the 51-year-old former Tottenham and Paris St Germain boss over the vacancy created by Potter’s untimely exit last month, but that an agreement is yet to be formalised.

Frank Lampard has been in interim charge since, but the team have won just one of the eight games they have played under him in his second spell at the helm, a run which culminated in Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Nottingham Forest at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea have three Premier League fixtures remaining – against Manchester City, Manchester United and Newcastle – and want their new boss in place once the campaign is over.

The Blues have endured a desperately disappointing season despite substantial investment in the playing squad and sit in 11th place having managed just 11 wins in 35 league games.

Julian Nagelsmann was the initial favourite to replace Potter, but they turned to Lampard, who was in charge from July 2019 until January 2021 following a glittering playing career with the club, to see out the rest of the season.

Potter was jettisoned just seven months into a five-year contract, but Chelsea have also struggled under their former midfield general, who at one stage oversaw a six-game losing run in all competitions.

Former Argentina international Pochettino enjoyed a five-year spell at Tottenham, guiding them to the Champions League final in 2019, but has been out of the game since being shown the door by Paris St Germain last summer.

If – as expected – he is appointed by Chelsea, he will inherit an expensively assembled, but under-performing squad who will not have European football next season.

Chelsea are in talks with Mauricio Pochettino to take over as manager at the end of the season, the PA news agency understands.

A deal has yet to be signed but Pochettino is closing in on his first role since leaving Paris St Germain in July, succeeding interim head coach Frank Lampard.

Chelsea have three Premier League fixtures remaining – against Manchester City, Manchester United and Newcastle – and want their new boss in place once the campaign is over.

The Blues have endured a disappointing season and sit in 11th place having managed just 11 wins in 35 league games.

Graham Potter was sacked in April and while Julian Nagelsmann was the initial favourite to replace him, Chelsea turned to Lampard to see out the rest of the season in his second spell as manager.

Potter was jettisoned just seven months into a five-year contract but the club has also struggled under Lampard, who at one stage oversaw a six-game losing run in all competitions.

Former Argentina international Pochettino enjoyed a popular five-year spell as Tottenham manager, guiding Spurs to the Champions League final in 2019.

If – as expected – he is appointed by Chelsea, the 51-year-old will inherit an expensively assembled but under-performing squad who will not be competing in Europe next season.

What the papers say

Liverpool are hoping to sign Manchester City “outcast” Kalvin Phillips in a £35m deal this summer, the Daily Star says. Jurgen Klopp targeted the 27-year-old midfielder after being priced out of a move for Jude Bellingham.

Elsewhere, the Daily Telegraph reports Romelu Lukaku will be asked whether or not he wants to try to revive his Chelsea career under proposed permanent head coach Mauricio Pochettino. The 29-year-old striker has spent the season on loan at Inter Milan after making it clear that he no longer wanted to play for former head coach Thomas Tuchel.

In more Blues news, the Evening Standard says Frank Lampard will make himself available as a sounding board for Pochettino to help ensure a smooth transition. The former Tottenham manager is due to take over at the end of the season.

And according to The Sun, Eddie Howe will have up to £150million to bolster his Newcastle squad this summer. The Magpies are laying plans to prepare their squad for a Champions League campaign next season and are willing to spend between £100-150million.

Social media round-up

Top four = big spending for Howe this summer. And he has targets ? ? https://t.co/vjUB6mcTgt

— Mirror Football (@MirrorFootball) April 26, 2023

Lampard on Mount: “New deal for him? Not my opinion. It will be the opinion of the club and the opinion of Mason, so that's between them”. ?⭐️ #CFC

“There’s no doubt, he’s top-class player. Trust me, it’s not easy to play with top players around and he’s managed to do that”. pic.twitter.com/oczA2DJdny

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) April 25, 2023

Players to watch

Lionel Messi: 90min says Barcelona are “leaving no stone unturned” in their bid to re-sign the 35-year-old Argentina forward from Paris St-Germain but a deal will not be straightforward.

Andre Onana: Italian outlet Gazzetta dello Sport reports Chelsea are interested in signing the 27-year-old Cameroon goalkeeper from Inter Milan and could use Kepa Arrizabalaga, 28, as part of the deal.

Frank Lampard urged Chelsea's players to show "personal pride" and finish the season strongly as the club target Mauricio Pochettino to become their new head coach.

Injuries are set to keep Reece James and Mason Mount out of action for the rest of the season, Lampard revealed on Tuesday.

The loss of the England internationals comes as the latest blow in a wretched season for the club that has seen two head coaches, Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter, lose their jobs.

Interim boss Lampard could also be replaced before the campaign ends, having overseen four defeats in four games since the club legend was asked to lead the team.

With Pochettino a firm contender to take charge, there may be a new man at the helm in the coming days or weeks.

What seems nigh-on certain is that Lampard will lead Chelsea in Wednesday's home game against fellow west London outfit Brentford.

The Bees are remarkably five points ahead of the wealthy Blues ahead of that fixture, and Lampard wants to see battling spirit from his 11th-placed side.

He broke the dismal news of the fresh injury setbacks at the beginning of Tuesday's pre-match press conference, saying: "Reece James is unavailable probably for the season, Mason Mount the same – potential for the last game of the season but probably not – so that's obviously disappointing for us.

"They're big players. Reece has a hamstring injury and Mason has been carrying this pelvic injury for quite a while. He's been trying typically, and medical staff have been trying, but we've got to the stage now where he will have minor surgery and then a four-week recovery."

Asked about the potential arrival of former Tottenham and Paris Saint-Germain boss Pochettino, Lampard said: "I'm not going to get involved in any future manager talk, because it's all speculation."

Lampard is unsure whether his short-term position will soon be affected by the club's efforts to appoint a coach, or whether he will continue to lead the team until the end of the season.

"I wouldn't expect anything in football, but I think it's very clear we've come into this club when it's in big difficulties," Lampard said.

He vowed he and his coaching staff would continue to try to draw the best from the expensively assembled Chelsea squad and called on the players to raise their games.

Two Champions League losses to Real Madrid and Premier League defeats to Wolves and Brighton have made it a disappointing start for Lampard.

"I have a big link to this club and pride, and so should the players," Lampard said, when asked whether Chelsea's season was effectively over.

"If you want to take it down your route, it's over, but on my route it's absolutely not over.

"I don't have a mentality that there's nothing to play for. I was fortunate to be a part of teams that were challenging normally for stuff towards the end of the season, but that's not a given. It's important that if you have a long career you won't compete absolutely every season, it's not a given.

"It comes down to your personal pride, responsibility, wearing the shirt. We've got seven games, four against the top four, three away from home.

"The run-in's really tough, there's no doubt about that. There's always something on those games. I understand that and the players have to understand that."

The race for Jude Bellingham's signature continues, with Liverpool having pulled out last week.

Numerous top clubs are keen on the 19-year-old England international who is contracted with Borussia Dortmund until 2025.

Bellingham signed his initial deal with Dortmund in 2020 but is set for a major pay rise if he moves or pens fresh terms.

TOP STORY – MADRID TO USE DIAZ IN BELLINGHAM DEAL

Real Madrid are plotting a potential player swap-plus-cash deal to land Jude Bellingham in the off-season, according to Cadena SER.

Los Blancos are investigating potentially using Brahim Diaz, currently on loan at Milan, in a deal to help reduce Dortmund's reported €150 million asking price.

Madrid are currently in the process of extending the stays of veteran midfielders Luka Modric and Toni Kroos.

ROUND-UP

- Manchester City are preparing a new contract offer for Erling Haaland to ward off rivals interest from top clubs such as Real Madrid, claims The Athletic.

- Rafael Leao wants to stay with Milan following interest from Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain, according to Manchester Evening News.

- Newcastle United have established contact with Ousmane Dembele's representatives to discuss a move for the Barcelona winger, claims 90min.

- Arsenal and Newcastle United are both interested in Bayer Leverkusen winger Moussa Diaby, per Le10Sport.

- The Telegraph reports Chelsea have opted against pursing Luis Enrique as their new manager, instead turning their attention to former Tottenham and Paris Saint-Germain boss Mauricio Pochettino. The Guardian claims Julian Nagelsmann remains Chelsea's top candidate.

- Tottenham will swoop on Chelsea's decision and look to appoint Enrique as Antonio Conte's replacement, according to The Express.

Mauricio Pochettino is the ideal man to take over at Chelsea in the eyes of Gary Neville.

The Blues are on the hunt for a new boss for the second time this season, having axed Graham Potter less than seven months after he succeeded Thomas Tuchel at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea's defeat to Aston Villa proved to be the straw that broke the camel's back for Potter, the result sending the Blues into the bottom half of the Premier League standings and way off the pace in the hunt for European football next season.

Inconsistent form plagued Potter's reign in west London, with results not improving significantly after Todd Boehly splashed the cash in a mega spending spree in the January window.

Those mid-season recruits have somewhat complicated matters moving forward, with further spending likely to be restricted moving forward, meaning a new boss will likely have to deal with the hand he is dealt.

For that reason, Neville believes former Tottenham boss Pochettino is the ideal fit due to his experience in managing younger players.

"Based on what Boehly has said, Chelsea have done their spending for the next three years - apart from signing a centre forward," Neville told Sky Sports' Monday Night Football.

"If they appoint Zidane, Enrique or Diego Simeone, they're going to want to have another £300m as they won't like some of the players they've previously signed.

"They've got to appoint a manager who is going to inherit and like the squad that they've got, a lot of them are young, and I think that man is Mauricio Pochettino."

Chelsea sacked Graham Potter on Sunday after barely seven months as their manager.

Potter, who took over from Thomas Tuchel in September, led the Blues to 12 wins, eight draws and 11 defeats.

His demise comes amid numerous changes of managers at Premier League clubs, with Tottenham last week parting with Antonio Conte.

TOP STORY – CHELSEA APPROACH TOP CANDIDATE NAGELSMANN

Chelsea have identified ex-Bayern Munich head coach Julian Nagelsmann as their top candidate and approached him already, claims Fabrizio Romano.

Romano said talks will be ongoing before a final decision, while he added the Blues hierarchy are admirers of Sporting boss Ruben Amorim.

However, Sky Sports Germany claims Nagelsmann is not interested in taking over at Chelsea.

TalkSPORT claims the dismissed Potter could be offered an immediate return to management by Leicester City who sacked Brendan Rodgers earlier on Sunday.

ROUND-UP

– AS claims that Paris Saint-Germain winger Kylian Mbappe has told the Real Madrid board that he intends to join Los Blancos as a free agent in 2024. According to the report, Madrid are not willing to negotiate a transfer fee with PSG, following their long-running interest in Mbappe, with the player needing to get out of his contract to move to the Spanish capital.

– Liverpool will consider an off-season move for Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher, reports The Independent.

– Fichajes claims Liverpool are also weighing up a surprise move for Real Madrid midfielder Eduardo Camavinga.

– Football Insider claims Arsenal have identified three midfield targets in Everton's Amadou Onana, West Ham's Declan Rice and Brighton and Hove Albion's Moises Caicedo.

– Manchester United's hopes of signing Eintracht Frankfurt forward Randal Kolo Muani have been set back with the Frenchman keen to join Bayern Munich in the off-season.

Just 206 days after Chelsea owner Todd Boehly assured the world that incoming head coach Graham Potter would be given time at Chelsea, the American decided to terminate the former Brighton and Hove Albion boss' contract.

That is fewer days in charge than any permanent manager/head coach at Stamford Bridge during the Roman Abramovich era, but it was not a decision taken without reason.

Chelsea sit 11th in the Premier League, with 38 points from 28 games their worst total at this stage since the 1994-95 season (36), while the Blues are in the bottom half of the table after at least 28 games for the first time since 1995-96, when they finished 11th.

Potter won just 12 of his 31 games in charge after arriving from Brighton in September (D8 L11), ultimately paying the price after Chelsea's dismal 2-0 home defeat to Aston Villa on Saturday.

So who will Boehly turn to next having given up on the Potter project? Stats Perform has taken a look at some of the early favourites.

Julian Nagelsmann

The German will probably have been the first name many thought of when news of Potter's sacking broke on Sunday, with Nagelsmann facing the same fate at Bayern Munich just a few days prior.

It would be somewhat of a coincidence given the 35-year-old was replaced at Bayern by former Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel, who had been replaced at Stamford Bridge by Potter.

Nagelsmann has been one of the most highly-rated young coaches in Europe since his work at Hoffenheim, where he boasted a record of 55 wins from 136 games (40 per cent), before upping that win percentage at RB Leipzig to 57 (54 wins from 95 games).

That was enough to convince Bayern he should replace Hansi Flick in July 2021, but despite winning the Bundesliga in what proved to be his only full season at the Allianz Arena, and reaching the quarter-finals of this season's Champions League, the club removed him.

Several of his former players at Bayern praised him in the days since, but you do wonder if someone who was not deemed a good fit at a similarly sized and demanding club would be a good fit for Chelsea.

Brendan Rodgers

The former Liverpool and Leicester City boss was sacked by the Foxes just hours before Potter got his marching orders, and on paper it doesn't sound like it would be much of an improvement.

Rodgers almost won the Premier League title with Liverpool in 2013-14 before his team regressed the following season after selling Luis Suarez, but he repaired his reputation at the King Power Stadium.

He won the FA Cup in 2020-21, beating Chelsea 1-0 in the final, and ended his time with the Foxes with a record of 92 wins from 204 games (D42 L70), a win percentage of 45.

Rodgers did learn the ropes as a youth coach at Chelsea though, and is arguably more of the same should Boehly still like the idea of a Potter-type of coach who favours a mix of pressing and possession.

It does feel like a job a bit beyond the 50-year-old, though it was not that long ago that some pundits were suggesting Arsenal should sack Mikel Arteta and hire Rodgers. Football, eh?

Mauricio Pochettino

The Argentinian was a very popular figure during his time at Tottenham, and he has been strongly linked with succeeding Antonio Conte at his former club.

Pochettino may not have won a trophy at Spurs, but he presided over two title challenges and the run to the 2019 Champions League final, which resulted in a 2-0 defeat to Liverpool.

His five-year reign included 113 wins from 202 Premier League games, a points-per-game (PPG) average of 1.89, before he was eventually dismissed by chairman Daniel Levy after appearing to take the club as far as he could.

Pochettino landed at Paris Saint-Germain, where he won a Ligue 1 title as well as a Coupe de France and Trophee des Champions, but failures in the Champions League and losing out on the 2020-21 French title to Lille were low points, albeit he only took over halfway through that season.

He is therefore perhaps more suited to more of an underdog than one that operates in the way Chelsea does.

On the other hand, perhaps he could tempt Harry Kane across London.

Luis Enrique

The former Real Madrid and Barcelona player most recently won 27 of 48 games as Spain head coach, but international football can be a different world to the top-level club game.

Luis Enrique was very successful in his last club job at Barca, though it admittedly helped having a front three of Lionel Messi, Suarez and Neymar all at their peak.

He won two LaLiga titles, three Copa del Rey crowns, a Supercopa de Espana, a European Super Cup and a Club World Cup, as well as the 2014-15 Champions League as part of a historic treble.

Overall, Luis Enrique won 87 of his 114 LaLiga games (2.4 PPG), and has shown that he can take a team of superstars and get plenty out of them while managing egos.

However, the fact he has not had a club job since 2017 might be seen as problematic by some fans, while it could also be argued he underachieved with Spain.

Roberto De Zerbi

It would really be a kick in the teeth for Brighton to have Chelsea take another of their head coaches so soon after luring Potter away, but on paper, this could make all the sense in the world for the Blues.

Potter earned the Chelsea gig from the fantastic work he did on the south coast, with De Zerbi replacing him as Seagulls boss after his departure.

The Italian has taken Brighton to another level since his arrival, with the club remarkably still in with a reasonable chance of finishing in the European spots, and perhaps even the top four.

De Zerbi has averaged 1.50 points per game, winning eight of his 20 league games in charge, as well as guiding Brighton to the FA Cup semi-finals.

Having De Zerbi develop the foundations laid by Potter could work twice, though it would likely cost Chelsea a fortune to find out, not that that usually deters them.

Harry Kane's future at Tottenham remains in limbo, given his contract status and the departure of Antonio Conte.

The 29-year-old forward, who recently became Spurs' all-time leading scorer, is out of contract in 2024.

Kane has previously spoken about his desire to contend for silverware and almost joined Manchester City in 2021.

TOP STORY – MAN UTD SANCTION KANE MOVE

The Manchester United bosses have sanctioned a potential £80million deal for Tottenham striker Harry Kane, reports the Daily Star.

United are ready to ramp up their interest in the England captain, who has interest from Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Chelsea.

The report claims United hope to get the jump on their rivals and open up talks soon, with a view to having a deal agreed with Kane within weeks.

ROUND-UP

– The Times reports Bayern Munich want to sign Chelsea midfielder Mason Mount who previously worked with the German champions' new boss Thomas Tuchel.

– Arsenal are circling for Eintracht Frankfurt's Danish midfielder Jesper Lindstrom who may be available for €30m, reports Sport1.

– The Mirror claims Liverpool have joined the battle to sign Evan Ndicka from Eintracht Frankfurt as a free agent in the off-season.

– Barcelona may cash in on Samuel Umtiti's revival on loan at Lecce and look to recoup a transfer fee this off-season according to SPORT.

– Sky Italy claims former Real Madrid boss and France World Cup winner Zinedine Zidane is on Tottenham's shortlist to replace Conte, along with Mauricio Pochettino, Julian Nagelsmann and Luis Enrique.

With Antonio Conte expected to leave Tottenham by the end of the week, attention is already turning to who might be next to try their hand at what continues to look a near-impossible job.

Spurs are a big club with a fabulous stadium, passionate fanbase and talented squad.

Despite the relative success of Harry Redknapp and Mauricio Pochettino in the last two decades, as well as investing in high-profile bosses Jose Mourinho and Conte, none have been able to bring silverware to the north London club.

The only trophy Spurs have claimed since the turn of the century was the EFL Cup in 2007-08, and any new manager/head coach will be tasked with ending that drought as soon as possible, as well as ensuring another season of Champions League football.

Stats Perform looks at some of the early favourites, with Conte seemingly on the brink.

Mauricio Pochettino

The Argentinian was a very popular figure during his time at White Hart Lane – and subsequently Wembley and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Pochettino may not have won a trophy, but he presided over two title challenges and the run to the 2019 Champions League final, which resulted in a 2-0 defeat to Liverpool.

He mostly got the best out of his players, too, and took many of them to another level.

His five-year reign included 113 wins from 202 Premier League games, a points-per-game (PPG) average of 1.89, very slightly higher than Conte's 1.88 (32 wins from 56 games).

Pochettino was eventually dismissed by chairman Daniel Levy after appearing to take the club as far as he could, so going back to him when still looking someone to take them to the next level might be a little backwards.

He would likely be a popular choice with the fans, though, and should at the very least provide some stability. Perhaps crucially, he might also be their best bet in convincing Harry Kane to stay.

Ryan Mason

It wouldn't technically be a return for Mason as he never actually left, taking on a first-team coach role after the end of his interim spell at the helm following the sacking of Mourinho in April 2021.

His second game in charge was a 1-0 defeat to Manchester City in the EFL Cup final, but Mason arguably did well considering his lack of experience.

Given he only took charge of six matches, it seems a little pointless to stake a claim for Mason based on his own PPG record (2.0).

But the former Spurs midfielder is the heavy favourite for the job, even if only on a short-term basis again.

Similarly to Pochettino, the thinking behind that choice would most likely be stability and that decision makers at the club may feel the players are likely to respond positively to someone they already know.

Unless he performs spectacularly, appointing Mason would probably be followed by a full-time hire at the end of the season.

Thomas Tuchel

While Tuchel would be yet another former Chelsea boss taking the reins, following in the footsteps of Glenn Hoddle, Andre Villas-Boas, Mourinho and Conte, it's hard to argue with his credentials.

The German won 35 of 63 Premier League games with the Blues, a PPG average of 1.94, as well as winning the Champions League in 2021.

Considering Spurs are eager to win a first trophy since 2008, the fact Tuchel guided Chelsea to five finals – including the 2021 Club World Cup – in less than two years will no doubt appeal, even if he did lose three of them.

Tuchel reportedly left Stamford Bridge partly due to a disagreement on transfers with owner Todd Boehly, which may not bode well given Conte's consistent complaining about the way Spurs work in the market.

Either way, the man who shared a furious handshake with Conte earlier this season could well be the same person to replace the Italian in the Spurs dugout.

Luis Enrique

The former Real Madrid and Barcelona player most recently won 27 of 48 games as Spain head coach, but international football can be a different world to the top-level club game.

Luis Enrique was very successful in his last club job at Barca, though it admittedly helped having a front three of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar all at their peak.

He won two LaLiga titles, three Copa del Rey crowns, a Supercopa de Espana, a European Super Cup and a Club World Cup, as well as the 2014-15 Champions League as part of a historic treble.

Overall, Luis Enrique won 87 of his 114 LaLiga games (2.4 PPG), but it is difficult to compare this to counterparts at Spurs given Barca's relative dominance in Spain.

His record at Roma earlier in his career could be a better barometer, winning 16 of his 38 Serie A games in charge of the Giallorossi (1.5 PPG), before winning 14 of 38 LaLiga matches as head coach of Celta Vigo (1.3 PPG) before heading to Camp Nou. But how relevant are these spells now given he left Balaidos nine years ago?

Similarly, the fact he's not had a club job since 2017 might be seen as problematic by some fans, while it could also be argued he underachieved with Spain.

Roberto De Zerbi

De Zerbi has made his mark on the Premier League very quickly since replacing Graham Potter at Brighton and Hove Albion in September.

Brighton have thrived and find themselves in a genuine fight for Europe, with a top-four finish not out of the question at this stage as they sit seven points behind fourth-placed Spurs with three games in hand.

De Zerbi has won eight of his 19 Premier League games, while the Seagulls rank second in the Premier League for passing accuracy (86.9 per cent), average possession (62.1 per cent) and passes per sequence (4.5). They are also third for goals (35) and fifth for passes played into the opposition's box since his first game, highlighting an attack-minded approach that would certainly be appreciated by a frustrated Spurs fanbase.

Getting him out of Brighton will be easier said than done, however, having already lost one head coach this season, not to mention their renown for getting a good deal – Potter reportedly cost Chelsea £21.5million.

Spurs will almost certainly have to pay through the nose or look elsewhere.

Oliver Glasner

A surprise name that has emerged in recent days is that of Eintracht Frankfurt head coach Oliver Glasner, who impressed so many by leading the Bundesliga club to Europa League success last season.

Glasner made a promising start to his coaching career in his native Austria with Ried and LASK, before guiding Wolfsburg to seventh and fourth-placed finishes in the German top-flight.

He then made the switch to Eintracht ahead of the 2021-22 season. He could only guide them to 11th in the Bundesliga, winning just three of their 17 games in the second half of the campaign, but this came amid the backdrop of Europa League glory, eliminating Real Betis, Barcelona and West Ham before beating Rangers in the final on penalties.

Some reports suggest Levy has already contacted Glasner, whose contract expires in 2024.

This season, Eintracht sit sixth in the league and were recently knocked out of the Champions League last 16 by Napoli.

Mauricio Pochettino would be making a mistake by going back to Tottenham as Jamie Carragher believes a second Spurs stint would be akin to Kevin Keegan's Newcastle United return.

Pressure is building on Tottenham coach Antonio Conte after a desperate run that has ended their hopes of winning silverware this season.

After back-to-back Premier League victories lifted Spurs into the top four, they crashed out of the FA Cup at Sheffield United, lost at Wolves in the league and then exited the Champions League following a dismal goalless draw against Milan.

With Conte's contract up at the end of the season, it appears likely the former Juventus, Chelsea and Inter boss will soon be departing Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Pochettino, who spent five years at the club, would be a popular appointment for many fans, and he remains out of work after leaving Paris Saint-Germain.

But Liverpool legend Carragher sees concerning parallels with Keegan's 2008 homecoming at Newcastle, where he soon left following a dispute with owner Mike Ashley.

"Never go back. That is what they say in football," Carragher wrote in The Telegraph.

"Mauricio Pochettino would be wise to remember that if he is tempted to return to Tottenham Hotspur.

"Don't do it, Poch. All parties need to move on. Comebacks are usually more romantic than logical.

"Pochettino may see Spurs as the best chance to return to the Premier League. Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy could curry favour with the supporters by re-appointing a popular ex-manager.

"They must know how rarely old magic is recreated in football."

While noting Carlo Ancelotti has enjoyed a successful second spell at Real Madrid and Jose Mourinho won the title after rejoining Chelsea, Carragher added: "Pochettino returning to Spurs would be like Kevin Keegan going back to Newcastle United.

"Like Keegan's Newcastle in the mid-90s, Pochettino's Tottenham charmed neutrals without winning trophies.

"Keegan's re-appointment in 2008 was greeted like the second coming, but he walked into different conditions and was gone eight months later."

Tottenham finished second under Pochettino in 2016-17, their best performance since the 1960s, and also came third twice.

He was unable to end their wait for silverware, however, losing in the Champions League final in 2019 and EFL Cup final in 2015.