Mauricio Pochettino already likes exciting Chelsea youngster Carney Chukwuemeka, according to reports.
Well-respected journalist Fabrizio Romano has claimed on Twitter this week that Mauricio Pochettino will soon sign a three-year deal to officially become Chelsea’s next permanent manager.
In the meantime, there’s now plenty of speculation emerging regarding what the 51-year-old coach wants to do with the Blues squad at Stamford Bridge.
Carney Chukwuemeka, who’s just 19, may be one individual with a future under Pochettino.
The Evening Standard claims that Pochettino is said to be a fan of Chukwuemeka.
It is understood that the 19-year-old midfielder will be with the first-team squad for the final three games of the season, so he could be in contention to play under caretaker boss Frank Lampard. This is because of the pile up of midfield injuries towards the back end of the season.
The report says that Chukwuemeka has agreed with Chelsea to delay joining up with England’s Under-20s squad for their World Cup tournament that starts this month.
Instead, the teenager will be with the Blues squad for the remainder of the 2022/23 campaign.
Chukwuemeka has been overlooked since Lampard returned to the Blues dugout as the interim boss, but injuries could result in him playing in these next three league games against Manchester City, Manchester United and Newcastle United.
He’s made 12 first-team appearances during his debut season at Stamford Bridge. In our view, he’s been treated harshly and should have played much more.
We’re very encouraged by the fact that Pochettino does already like Chelsea’s highly-rated young talent.
The Argentine’s track record of developing and improving youngsters bodes well for the future of the box-to-box midfielder.
TalkSPORT recently claimed that Chukwuemeka could be in ‘high demand’ when the summer transfer window opens. Our hope is Pochettino maps out a first-team plan for him next season, though.
