Mauricio Pochettino urged his Chelsea players to free themselves of the burden of needing to reach the Carabao Cup final and instead prioritise enjoying Tuesday’s semi-final first leg against Middlesbrough.
The game at the Riverside could see Pochettino’s team put one foot in the club’s first major final since 2021 and place them on course to crown the manager’s first season in charge with silverware.
Chelsea have endured a disjointed six months since the Argentinian was appointed, with an expensively-assembled squad taking longer than hoped to acclimatise to new surroundings.
Pochettino fielded the club’s youngest-ever Premier League starting XI during the 2-1 home win against Crystal Palace in December, with an average age of just over 23, and a lack of senior experience has seemingly been a factor in the team being slow to find its groove.
Michael Carrick’s Boro are currently 12th in the Championship, two places above Preston who lost 4-0 at Stamford Bridge in the FA Cup third round on Saturday.
Chelsea were slow to ignite against second-tier opposition, taking until the 58th minute to break the deadlock after a solid first half that yielded few chances.
Pochettino warned against a similarly languid start on Tuesday night, but gave his young side licence to find the joy in the occasion.
“The most important thing is we need to enjoy the semi-final, not to feel like it’s compulsory for us to be in the final,” he said. “Football is not about that. You cannot play if you feel pressure and you don’t feel fresh in your mind.
“If you feel it’s compulsory (to win), always with some restriction – you need to take the semi-final as a great opportunity to enjoy playing football, performing well, running, being aggressive, being all together. Not to feel it’s compulsory to go to the final. You start to limit yourself.”
Chelsea have won four of their last five games in all competitions including the penalty shoot-out victory against Newcastle in December that set up Tuesday’s meeting on Teesside.
Pochettino hopes victory in the Carabao Cup final on February 25 could help engineer the chemistry the club need in order to succeed.
“One of the most important things is to create this chemistry between us (club staff),” he said. “We are maybe 120 people (at the club) seeing us every single day, it’s so important to work well together.
“And then the players, they need to trust. Always it’s a process. When there are so many new players on the team, in some ways it’s good, but it’s also about creating a chemistry. That is not easy. We need time.
“We don’t know if it’s two or three months, or six months or one season.
“We need to feel the trust, feel the confidence, to care for your team-mate. You are going to be there if something goes wrong.”
Pochettino added he does not see his apparent lack of aggression in the dugout or before the media as a problem as he seeks to improve his team’s competitiveness.
“One (important) thing is to be polite, empathise with people,” he said. “I don’t need to be aggressive. Why do I need to be aggressive? I don’t need to act.
“How you are as a coach, you translate your stamina, translate the way you want to play, you are aggressive during training sessions, in the way you approach players in the meetings. It doesn’t mean that after, outside, you have to be the same way.”
Sevilla 1-2 Barcelona: Bittersweet farewell for Xavi as Barca end season with a win
Barcelona ended the season with a 2-1 victory at Sevilla in LaLiga on Sunday, making departing coach Xavi's farewell bittersweet after a trophy-less season.
La Blaugrana came out all guns blazing from the start and took the lead in the 15th minute through Robert Lewandowski who scored from close range after latching onto Joao Cancelo's cross.
Sevilla levelled with Youssef En-Nesyri's strike in the 31st minute and went close again but failed to beat Marc-Andre ter Stegen before Barca got the winner on the hour through Fermin Lopez.
Barca were already guaranteed second place going into Xavi's final game. The Spaniard was sacked on Friday, after a disappointing campaign in which they lost the Spanish Supercopa final to Real Madrid and were knocked out of the Champions League by Paris Saint-Germain in the quarter-final.
Data Debrief: A legend departs
Xavi never lost any of his six games as a manager against Sevilla in LaLiga (W5 D1), making them just the third opponent that he faced six times without defeat (also W5 D1 against Real Mallorca and Osasuna).
Fermin got the all-important goal to ensure Xavi's tenure ended on a high note. He has scored seven goals in LaLiga in 2024, a record surpassed by only one other Spanish player in Europe's top five leagues this year: Iago Aspas (eight).
Verona 2-2 Inter: Arnautovic double earns point for Serie A winners
Champions Inter end their Serie A season with a 2-2 draw against Verona thanks to a Marko Arnautovic double.
The Austrian opened the scoring after 10 minutes with a neat finish, but Inter were soon pegged back as Tijjani Noslin equalised six minutes later.
The Dutchman then set up Tomas Suslov for their second to turn the game on its head, but another smart finish from Arnautovic on the stroke of half-time ensured they would salvage a point.
Simone Perilli proved the hero for Verona in the end, pulling off a string of fine saves to keep his side level.
Data Debrief: Landmark for Inzaghi
Simone Inzaghi has now earned 250 points as a coach in Serie A with Inter, an achievement only Roberto Mancini has reached so far with the Nerazzurri in the three-points-per-win era (436). This draw takes him up to the landmark after 77 wins and 19 draws (18 losses).
After winning the Scudetto with five games to go, Inzaghi has led Inter to 94 points in Serie A, with only three teams ever earning more points in a single campaign in the competition in the three-points-per-win era: Inter in 2006-07 (97) and Juventus in 2013-14 (102) and 2017-18 (95).
Bonucci calls time on glittering career
Leonardo Bonucci has called time on his glittering career, after playing his final game for Fenerbahce.
The decorated defender announced on Saturday that he would retire at the end of the Turkish Super Lig season, which concluded with Ismail Kartal's side inflicting a 6-0 rout on Istanbulspor.
However, it was not quite enough to snatch the title from Galatasaray, who finished three points clear after a 3-1 victory at Konyaspor on the final day.
Bonucci, who signed from Union Berlin in January, was given a wonderful reception as he was presented with a plaque before the game, in which he came on as a 64th-minute substitute.
The 37-year-old enjoyed the most success during his career with Juventus, where he won eight Serie A titles and reached two Champions League finals, while he helped Italy to glory at Euro 2020.
"It was a pleasure for me to be a part of this wonderful family," he said of his time at Fenerbahce on Saturday. "I tried to show my best on and off the field.
A statement on the club website paid tribute to Bonucci, reading: "It was an honour to see a legend like you in a Cubuklu jersey.
"At this special moment of your career, we would like to thank you on behalf of the entire Fenerbahce family. We wish you successful and healthy days in which you will be a part of football in your future life."
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