In response to astonished pleas from Chelsea supporters to succeed Mauricio Pochettino, Sam Allardyce responds flawlessly.
After losing 1-0 to a disorganized Liverpool team in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday, the Argentine is facing more and more pressure at Stamford Bridge.
Pochettino’s campaign in west London has been a dismal one, and this setback has only made things worse.
Chelsea is now 11th in the Premier League standings and might miss out on European competition for a second straight season.
The club’s followers have become irate over it; one fan in particular has called for Big Sam to be appointed in lieu of Pochettino.
Allardyce, 69, responded emphatically when asked if he would be up to the task at Stamford Bridge despite not having played for a team since his four-game tenure at Leeds at the end of the previous season.
He said, laughing, “Oh yeah, I’d fly back from Dubai for that – get me there!” on talkSPORT Breakfast.
The former England head coach skillfully listed the precise areas where the Blues are having problems, suggesting that he has been researching the team’s present situation.
“Arrange the defense,” he continued. “It’s the worst Premier League defense I’ve seen in a very long time.”
“That is perceived by some as a bad punt. On Monday Night Football, there is a lot of discussion on Manchester United’s shooting total and how it compares to elite clubs like Liverpool, Manchester City, and Arsenal.
“Their defensive records are the best.” It’s a straightforward mathematical formula. Not the best attack, but the best defense wins the league.
“The best attack gives you the opportunity to get the points in the end but the defensive side of it wins you the league.
“The defending has been ignored for many years now and I’ve never seen such bad defending for a long time.”
Allardyce delivered a scathing evaluation of the standard of coaching in the Premier League in the most recent seasons, following on his criticism of Chelsea’s defensive shortcomings.
“I actually question the coaching these days,” he said, “considering the quality of the Premier League and the money that’s spent, the quality of defending in the Premier League is worse or has been bad for the last two or three years.”
“It seems like people have overlooked one of the most crucial aspects of football, which is the ability to recover the ball when you don’t have it. There is so much focus on skill and technique in the game.”
