Jamie O'Hara insists that Mauricio Pochettino has to win a trophy for Chelsea. Otherwise, doubts will remain over his suitability as Blues boss.
The Argentinian boss will lead Chelsea out for Sunday's Carabao Cup Final against Liverpool, looking to win his first trophy in English football and begin to validate the outlay owner Todd Boehly has spent on the current crop of players at Stamford Bridge.
Speaking to Grosvenor Sport, former Tottenham midfielder O'Hara believes that Pochettino and the club have to start winning things because they are way behind the other teams in the Premier League's top six.
“There’s going to be question marks over Mauricio Pochettino at Chelsea until he wins a trophy,” he said.
“It’s Chelsea Football Club – they’re one of the most successful clubs in the last 20 years. Todd Boehly has not come in to make them a bang-average football team – he is a multi-billionaire who has spent a fortune on the club since he took over, so he’s not going to be happy with finishing 10th.
“Even if they finish sixth or seventh, it isn’t good enough – Chelsea have to fight for the title, but they’re nowhere near doing that at the moment. They’re a million miles behind Liverpool, Manchester City, Arsenal and even Aston Villa. Pochettino has to quickly find a way of turning these soft, young players into men, because they have been weak all season.
“Winning the League Cup against Liverpool would be a massive help to his safety at the club. In the Premier League this season they’ve been shocking, they really have. Whenever I’ve watched them throughout the campaign, they’ve been miles off it.
"They played alright against Manchester City the other night, and there are moments when you think there is a team there, but they’re 10th in the table after spending a billion pounds – it’s nowhere near good enough.”
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