Pochettino wants to start Chelsea job THIS week as Tottenham fans heartbroken

Mauricio Pochettino doesn't want to wait until the summer to be appointed Chelsea boss and could replace Frank Lampard at the helm before the end of the season.

The Argentine is the hot favourite to land the job following Julian Nagelsmann's withdrawal from the race last week with a final decision expected to be made in the coming days.

The move would be a real kick in the teeth for Tottenham fans who hold Pochettino in the highest regard (for now) following his five-year stint in charge, during which he launched the team's first ever genuine Premier League title challenge and led them to the Champions League final for the first time.

Spurs, who sacked caretaker manager Cristian Stellini on Monday, are on the hunt for a new manager too following Antonio Conte's departure, but it's understood Pochettino isn't being considered by chairman Daniel Levy, who is mulling over moves for the likes of Nagelsmann, Luis Enrique and Vincent Kompany.

Heartbroken Tottenham fans made no secret of their disgust at the situation on social media, with one tweeting: "Pochettino's face fluttering on some banner in the Shed as 'we hate Tottenham' rings around Stamford Bridge. I genuinely feel like I'm losing my f***ing mind here."

Another wrote: "Nothing could be more Tottenham than us hiring four ex-Chelsea managers and them all tanking, before Chelsea hire one of the only good managers we've ever had, not really wanting him, but him inevitably winning something."

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A third commented: "Pochettino going to Chelsea just proves that being a Tottenham fan is just painful pointlessness. All the suffering without the eventual payoff that all other clubs seem to get at some point."

"Of course we can't have nice things. Ajax away. 16/17. All those happy memories, gone if Poch goes to Chelsea. Of course. I'm in hell," tweeted a fourth.

Pochettino's reputation of improving players, developing youngsters and playing attractive football has always appealed to Blues owner Todd Boehly, who approached him in September following Thomas Tuchel's departure.

Chelsea's squad is in desperate need of moulding following a £500m spending spree, and the powers that be at the club are confident Pochettino has all the tools to turn their fortunes around and build a title-winning team.

After hanging up his boots in 2006, Pochettino was appointed manager of Espanyol - where he spent the bulk of his playing career. In 2013 he joined Southampton before being poached by Tottenham a year later.

He was sacked in 2019 following a disappointing start to the season, despite leading the side to the Champions League final a few months before. He joined PSG in January 2021, and won three major honours - the first of his managerial career - before getting the boot at the end of the 2021/22 season, just a few days after winning Ligue 1.