"Poch is the right man for Chelsea's project" - Fans react as Blues secure European spot after 2-1 win over Bournemouth
Fans have taken to social media to react as Chelsea secured a European spot for next season with their 2-1 win over Bournemouth in the Premier League on Sunday, May 19. They needed to finish in sixth place to book a spot in Europe, and they did, edging Newcastle United by three points.
Chelsea looked to be the better side on the day, ensuring an early, impressive start with a goal from Moises Caicedo. The midfielder powered in a long-range effort from the half-way line after picking up the loose ball with the goalkeeper quite far off his line.
Raheem Sterling continued their strong start with an early second half goal (48'), putting them two up. While an own goal from Benoit Badiashile did come in a minute later to set the stage for a nervy finish for the Blues, they held on to secure their win.
While the Blues are now guaranteed a spot in Europe next season, the competition will depend on the FA Cup winner. If Manchester City win the FA Cup, Chelsea will play in the Europa League. However, if Manchester United beat City, they'll have to settle for the Europa Conference League. Fans took to social media to react as they said:
"CHELSEA IS BACK. POCH IS THE RIGHT MAN FOR CHELSEA'S PROJECT !!" a fan exclaimed.
"What an end to the season" another added.
"GET IN!" another fan exclaimed.
"Big season come 2024/25 we will be there" a fan promised.
"don’t ruin our europa league record," a fan warned.
"Thank you for everything guys. We go again next season," a fan added.
"We were lucky, we don’t deserve it," a fan pessimistically stated.
"Congratulations to us. Only if we didn’t slip up on games we should have won comfortably we would have been in at least top 4," another fan added.
Others added:
Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino recently had a meeting with club co-owner
While Mauricio Pochettino may have secured European competition for Chelsea next season, there are no guarantees about his future at the club. However, the manager has now admitted that he had a meeting with club co-owner Todd Boehly regarding the club's performance.
Pochettino said (via New York Times):
“I don’t know if this (meeting with the owners) is going to happen,” Pochettino said. “I have an idea about this. I can tell you that on Friday night Todd invited me to dinner."
“It was a very nice dinner together but I don’t know about the rumours of the review. Look, my staff tomorrow are going to fly home, (unless) tonight they decide another thing or tell us to stay. I’m going to stay a few more days in London. My door is open and my phone is going to be on.”
However, he refused to divulge details about the conversations that took place during the dinner. He also kept mum about whether he would lead the club next season.