Mauricio Pochettino future and FA Cup underdogs – pundits predict the end of Chelsea's season

Mauricio Pochettino will be determined to return to winning ways when Chelsea face Everton at the weekend. The Blues will welcome Sean Dyche's side to Stamford Bridge on Monday evening, April 15, as they both hope to climb the Premier League table.

While Champions League qualification looks out of reach, Chelsea remain determined to clamber into the top-six. Meanwhile, the Toffees will be looking to distance themselves from a relegation battle at the bottom of the table after another point deduction.

It will be the west London outfit's penultimate fixture before a tough FA Cup semi-final clash against Manchester City and, with Pochettino under pressure, building momentum will be imperative. So, with that being said, football.london has collated what the big-name pundits have been saying about Chelsea lately.

Europa League qualification up for grabs...

While Chelsea are just ninth in the Premier League, they're only five points behind sixth-placed Manchester United in the race for Europa League qualification. The Blues have a game in hand over the Red Devils, which could prove decisive by the end of the season.

A ticket to the Europa Conference League is also up for grabs, with West Ham and Newcastle United struggling to climb the table. However, two pundits believe that Chelsea could opt out of UEFA competitions next term to escape any potential financial fair play infringement.

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In an interview with The Athletic, Kieran Maguire claimed that the west London outfit may need to accept a ban. The football finance expert said: "It could be in Chelsea’s interests to do the same as Milan.

"We’re moving into the realms of three-dimensional chess here, which some clubs are capable of playing. By the time you pay the players’ bonuses for qualifying for the competition, transport, accommodation and other costs, you’re only making a small amount of money from the Conference League.

"You’ll struggle to get a decent number of fans to attend Stamford Bridge if the opposition is modest. That isn’t a criticism of them. It’s modern-day economics.

"If they are exceeding the UEFA limits, the question becomes, ‘Do we want to go and play in the Conference League next season?’ Because they won’t make any money from it."

Meanwhile, speaking on Sky Sports, Paul Merson said: "I think it’s going to get to a stage where they can’t want to get in the Europa Conference [League], surely.

"Why would you want to get in that on Thursday nights? Chelsea have got a squad together to go and try to win the Premier League, not play on Thursday nights in Magaluf."

FA Cup glory on the horizon...

Chelsea will lock horns with Manchester City at Wembley in the FA Cup semi-final on Sunday, April 21. While the Blues must defeat the reigning champions in order to reach the final, Ally McCoist has insisted Pochettino's side have what it takes to upset the apple cart.

"I think in recent weeks there has been signs at Chelsea of improvement," said the pundit on talkSPORT last month. "Massive amount of work to do, I think Pochettino knows that and accepts that. I think Chelsea are more than capable of winning the cup, City will be favourites.

"You could argue they were slightly unlucky against Liverpool in the League Cup, although I thought Liverpool were slightly the better team. They’ve got a long way to go before they can challenge Liverpool, City, and perhaps Arsenal, in the league."

Pochettino's future in question...

While large sections of the Chelsea fanbase have called for Pochettino to be sacked, Joe Cole recently launched a staunch defence of the Argentinean. Speaking to talkSPORT, the former Blues midfielder said: "It’s a transitional time for the club, we know that.

"There are young players and watching them develop, when I watch them play, I want to get on there with them. I want to help them. There is so much talent there, so much potential and I think Pochettino has done a great job because he’s constantly drilling that narrative, 'you can’t look at this team like you would look at Chelsea teams of the past'.

"This is a team that is developing and the targets are different," Cole added. "Poch is a top manager. [Graham] Potter was a top manager, Frank [Lampard] was a top manager, [Thomas] Tuchel was a top manager… I think you need time and they need to work with what they’ve got."

A big summer transfer window...

Bizarrely, Reece James and Conor Gallagher have both been thinly linked with departures from Stamford Bridge ahead of the summer transfer window. After forking out hundreds of millions on new players recently, many believe that Chelsea could be left no choice but to cash-in on their academy graduates.

However, William Gallas has already ruled out the possibility of James and Gallagher leaving west London anytime soon. Speaking to GamblingZone, the former Blues defender said: "Chelsea won’t sell Reece James, you have to keep players who have come through the academy and you need players with that identity.

"He is the captain, but unfortunately he is often injured - despite this, we should keep him. It’s the same for Connor Gallagher, they both have to stay. I know that there are problems with the finances at the moment, but they have to sell another player to fix this."

Then, on whether or not Chelsea need a new striker striker, Gallas said: "Nicolas Jackson is a player I said needed more time, and he’s still young, only 22-years-old. He is a striker who can improve to score more goals, and now he’s scored nine times in 25 Premier League games; which is not too bad.

"I would set him a target of finishing on around 15 goals, which would be great. He still needs to improve in front of goal, against Burnley he showed good movement but his finishing was not good enough to take those chances. We can still count on him for next season, because he is still young and will improve."