Chelsea's shocking start to the season has got people pondering how long Mauricio Pochettino can keep his job
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Chelsea's dreadful start to the season has seen head coach Mauricio Pochettino come under pressure just four months after being appointed.
Following Sunday's 1-0 defeat at home to Aston Villa, the Blues have lost three of their opening six Premier League games of 2023/24 and won just one, scoring only five goals – as many as bottom-of-the-table Sheffield United.
And considering the West London club's track record for sacking managers in recent years, Pochettino might just be feeling his seat in the Stamford Bridge dugout warming up a little, despite insisting "I think the team is performing well".
Here are the odds for Chelsea's next manager if they do decide to dispense with the Argentine's services...
Having led France to World Cup glory in 2018 (and to another final in 2022), Didier Deschamps knows what it takes to win at the very highest level.
He's been in charge of Les Bleus for 11 years – after spells in club management with Monaco, Juventus and Marseille – so he might he fancy a change to take charge of the Blues?
2. Zinedine Zidane: 5/1
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Zinedine Zidane won it all with Real Madrid as a player and coach – but he's never managed away from the La Liga giants.
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The three-time FIFA World Player of the Year regularly features on the lists of favourites for big Premier League jobs; is it almost his time?
3. Roberto De Zerbi: 7/1
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Last time Chelsea poached a manager from Brighton, it didn't work out too well: Graham Potter lasted just seven months in the job.
His successor on the South Coast has taken the Seagulls from strength to strength, though, and it does feel like only a matter of time before a giant of European football comes calling for Roberto De Zerbi.
4. Julian Nagelsmann: 10/1
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Seeing as Julian Nagelsmann has only just taken over as boss of the German national team, it's fair to say it seems rather unlikely that Chelsea would be able to bring him in.
The Blues were heavily linked with the former Bayern Munich manager before appointing Pochettino, though, so there may still be some interest there on their part.
5. Hansi Flick: 16/1
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Or how about the man Nagelsmann succeeded as Germany manager? Hansi Flick – who was sacked earlier this month, the first time such thing had ever happened in the history of the national team.
The ex-Bayern and Hoffenheim boss has an excellent track record at club level, however, having steered Bayern to successive Bundesliga titles and 2019/20 Champions League success.
Tom Hancock started freelancing for FourFourTwo in April 2019 and has also written for the Premier League and Opta Analyst, among others. He supports Wycombe Wanderers and has a soft spot for Wealdstone. A self-confessed statto, he has been known to watch football with a spreadsheet (or several) open...
