Former Arsenal star Paul Merson has said Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino could be in trouble if his team fail to beat Middlesbrough in the Carabao Cup semi-final.
Chelsea Have A Big Week Ahead Of Them
The Blues have not had the best of seasons. Picking up just 31 points from 21 Premier League games, they find themselves in ninth place in the Premier League standings. They are trailing fourth-placed Aston Villa by a whopping 12 points, making it unlikely for them to secure a berth in next year’s UEFA Champions League.
While their top-four aspirants have pretty much evaporated, they still stand a chance to win not one but two domestic trophies. They are in the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup and the Fourth Round of the FA Cup, and have a great shot at winning a domestic cup double at the end of the season.
On Tuesday (January 23), the Pensioners will take on Middlesbrough in the second leg of the Carabao Cup semi-finals. They fell to an embarrassing 1-0 defeat to the Championship side in the first leg and will need to overturn the deficit in the return leg at Stamford Bridge.
On Friday (January 26), they will meet Aston Villa in the FA Cup Fourth Round, and a win over Unai Emery’s side would give Pochettino’s team a massive boost.
Merson Claims Pochettino’s Future Could Become Doubtful If They Fail To Beat Middlesbrough
Writing in his Sky Sports column, ex-Gunner Merson speculated Pochettino could be in trouble if his team failed to overcome the upcoming challenges.
“This is a massive week in Chelsea’s season, which could fall apart in four days. If they win their Carabao Cup semi-final against Middlesbrough then beat Aston Villa, they’re knocking out a big team from the FA Cup as well. Then when you’re a few points off sixth place, all of a sudden it doesn’t look so bad,” revealed Merson.
He added:
“But losing to Middlesbrough would be a major blow. Not going through over two legs against a Championship team? In one-off games you never know, you can lose one-off games. But over two games…
“Chelsea might still squeeze in the top six, you never know. But what an opportunity to get to the Carabao Cup final playing against a Championship team in the semi-final. It’s the first trophy to be won, a lot of teams would love to be there and are wishing they were there.”
Merson concluded by writing:
“If Chelsea don’t go through to the final on Tuesday night, I can’t see them beating Aston Villa on Friday night, so it’s a big few days for them.
“If they did lose to Middlesbrough, where would it leave Mauricio Pochettino? It’s a long-term project at Chelsea, you don’t buy players and put them on seven or eight-year contracts and start changing the manager every six months.”
The former Tottenham Hotspur boss has managed Chelsea in 27 official matches so far, overseeing 14 wins, four draws, and nine defeats.
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