Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino says the Blues late fight for European qualification was just a reward for the club’s patience during a difficult season.
With one game remaining, Pochettino’s team defeated Brighton 2-1 on Wednesday to move up to sixth place in the Premier League.
In the 34th minute, Cole Palmer headed in his 22nd league goal of the year to give them the lead.
Chelsea’s lead was increased by Christopher Nkunku’s goal in the 64th minute, and Blues defender Reece James was dismissed for kicking Brighton’s Joao Pedro.
In stoppage time, Danny Welbeck narrowed the gap, but Chelsea held on to win the title for the fourth time in a row—a feat they haven’t accomplished since October 2022.
Chelsea went ahead of the Magpies on Wednesday after Newcastle’s 3-2 loss against Manchester United in the other game.
If the Blues win at Stamford Bridge on Sunday against Bournemouth, or if seventh-place Newcastle loses at Brentford, they will be assured a spot in the Europa League for the next season.
If Chelsea wins at Bournemouth and Tottenham loses at Sheffield United, they might even finish fifth.
It’s a remarkable comeback orchestrated by Pochettino, who has come under fire during his turbulent debut season as manager.
Pochettino even made a suggestion lately that he would resign at the conclusion of the season amid calls for his firing, adding that it wouldn’t be the end of the world if chairman Todd Boehly fired him.
However, the Argentine was in a more upbeat frame of mind following Chelsea’s approach to Europe, complimenting the team’s management for adhering to their game plan.
“We have improved results and performances. We talked about patience and when you need to build something you need time but it always looks like an excuse at a big club,” he said.
“The evolution of the team is there. We have kept working and being positive and to finish in a good way would be good for the club.”
Pochettino is left with a youthful team, whose inexperience has frequently been their problem, despite Boehly’s consortium spending over £1 billion ($1.2 billion) on new acquisitions during their two-year reign.
But Pochettino claimed that the victory over Brighton demonstrated their commitment to the team.
“The Premier League is the toughest league in the world. Massive credit to the players, we fully deserved the victory. That’s why I’m so happy. It allows us to dream to play in Europe next season,” Pochettino said.
“The three points puts us in a very good position in the table to attack the last game against Bournemouth for the possibility to be in Europe.”
After making an unexpected transfer from Manchester City in September, Palmer has emerged as Chelsea’s outstanding player this season.
The teenage England attacker was given his wish to leave City in pursuit of regular playing time, and his recent goal was more compensation for Chelsea’s astute £42 million investment.
“Chelsea is a big club and everyone wants to finish higher than sixth but you have to look at where we were at the start of the season so to get back into Europe would be a step in the right direction,” Palmer said.
“All credit to the manager. All the players love the manager and want to fight for him.”
Photo by Backpagepix
