Mauricio Pochettino assured he was “more relaxed than ever” after Chelsea’s convincing victory over Aston Villa in the FA Cup fourth round on Wednesday.
The Argentine has seen the pressure rise a notch in recent weeks, after two disappointing performances against Liverpool and Wolves in the space of a week. But his side responded convincingly on Wednesday night by dominating Aston Villa and progressing to the fifth round of the FA Cup. Pochettino said he does not listen to noises off the pitch and again stressed the need to be patient with an incredibly young squad.
The Chelsea manager told ITV after the 3-1 win: “Other things worry me in life, but not football. Today I was more relaxed than ever because I knew the team was going to perform well. You know when players are with you and they care about you. I felt it after (the loss against) the Wolves. We are talking about the youngest team in the Premier League, but the expectations are so high. It’s normal that players sometimes feel the pressure of being in the top four and fighting for big things. It’s not easy to manage. We believe in it 200%, there may be noise around us, but it’s football.
Chelsea still not convincing
The ‘noise’ that Pochettino speaks of has erupted in every corner of the Chelsea supporter base following Sunday’s dreadful 4-2 defeat at home to Wolves. The Stamford Bridge faithful did not hesitate to show their disapproval, not only by booing, but also by chanting the names of former manager José Mourinho and former owner Roman Abramovich. Blues supporters took to social media to express their discontent and were joined by Thiago Silva’s wife Belle. Pochettino has since played down this feud.
Enzo Fernandez’s second-half goal means his last three goals for Chelsea have come in cup play (against Preston in the FA Cup third round and against Middlesbrough in the Carabao Cup semi-final second leg).
