Pochettino has it all to do with Chelsea (Picture: JOHN THYS/AFP via Getty Images)
Mauricio Pochettino’s appointment as the new Chelsea manager has seen him become the latest in a long line of men to have taken charge at Stamford Bridge since the turn of the millennium.
Former owner Roman Abramovich had an infamously high turnover of managers during his reign between 2003 and 2022.
And that has seemingly continued under new owner Todd Boehly, who has appointed the Argentine to help steer the club back on track after a chaotic first season in charge.
Let’s take a look at the 14 previous managers Chelsea have had under Abramovich and Boehly.
Claudio Ranieri
September 2000 – June 2004
Abramovich inherited the charismatic Italian when he completed his purchase of the club from previous owner Ken Bates.
Having led Chelsea into the Champions League just before the Russian oligarch’s arrival, Ranieri was given £120 million to spend in the summer of 2003 and he oversaw a Premier League runners-up spot with the club’s then-highest ever points tally.
But along with beating Arsenal’s invincible team in the Champions League quarter-finals, Ranieri’s performance was deemed insufficient and he was given the axe after almost four years at the helm.
Jose Mourinho
July 2004 – September 2007, July 2013 – December 2015
The ‘Special One’ rocked up in west London just weeks after winning the Champions League with Porto, with Mourinho regarded as one of the finest young managers in Europe at the time.
Mourinho will go down in Chelsea history (Picture: ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP via Getty Images)
The Portuguese won the Premier League title in his first season in charge with Chelsea conceding just 15 goals in the process, with another league title, an FA Cup and two League Cups added to his collection.
Mourinho, who never lost a home league game during his first spell, left the club just weeks into the 2007/08 season by mutual consent following tensions between himself and Abramovich.
He returned to Chelsea to much fanfare in 2013, guiding them to another Premier League and League Cup title.
A disastrous title defence in 2015/16 which saw Chelsea languishing one point above the relegation zone resulted in him leaving the club for a second time, although he remains Chelsea’s most successful ever manager with eight trophies.
Avram Grant
September 2007 – May 2008
Grant, whose appointment as director of football was to the disliking of Mourinho, replaced him as manager following Mourinho’s dismissal.
The Israeli’s reign turned into a case of what might have been, losing the Champions League final against Manchester United on penalties and the League Cup final to Tottenham.
Chelsea also missed out on the Premier League by two points to Manchester United with Grant sacked at the end of the season.
Luiz Felipe Scolari
July 2008 – February 2009
Scolari’s appointment saw him become the first ever World Cup-winning manager to work in the Premier League having won the trophy with his native Brazil in 2002.
It didn’t work out for the Brazilian legend (Picture: Phil Cole/Getty Images)
Scolari started his Chelsea reign by going 12 unbeaten in all competitions, but a drop off in results and performances saw the Blues fall seven points behind leaders Manchester United in fourth place.
He was sacked just two days after a frustrating 0-0 draw at home to Hull City which left Chelsea with only three wins from their previous nine league games.
Guus Hiddink
February 2009 – June 2009, December 2015 – June 2016
Hiddink was drafted into the Stamford Bridge hot seat as interim manager until the end of the 2008/09 season.
The legendary Dutchman, who combined his role with managing Russia at the same time, described winning the FA Cup at the end of the season as one of his proudest achievements.
He only lost one game in the whole of his first tenure – away at Tottenham- whilst he suffered an agonising and hugely controversial Champions League semi-final defeat to Barcelona on away goals.
Chelsea players and fans begged Hiddink to stay on as permanent manager, but he had always stated his intention to return full time to the Russia job.
Hiddink was appointed as interim manager again after Mourinho was sacked in 2015 and guided the club to tenth.
Carlo Ancelotti
July 2009 – May 2011
The Italian was hired after guiding AC Milan to two Champions League titles in 2003 and 2007, with the belief amongst the Chelsea hierarchy being that he could repeat his continental success at Stamford Bridge.
Ancelotti remains popular with fans (Picture: ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP via Getty Images)
Chelsea became the first team ever to score over 100 goals in a single Premier League season on their way to the title – with the FA Cup also secured for good measure.
His second and ultimately final season in charge saw him sacked just hours after the final league game of the campaign at Everton despite Chelsea finishing second in the table.
At the time of his departure, Ancelotti’s win percentage with Chelsea was the third highest in Premier League history.
Andre Villas-Boas
July 2011 – March 2012
Chelsea paid a world record £13 million in compensation to release Villas-Boas from his contract with Porto.
Pressure began to mount on the Portuguese in February 2012 after a run of poor form, which included a 3-1 defeat away to Napoli in the Champions League last 16 where John Terry, Ashley Cole and Michael Essien were dropped from the starting XI.
Having been asked for an explanation over the team selection by club officials on behalf of Abramovich, Villas-Boas was sacked with Chelsea three points behind Arsenal in fifth place.
Roberto Di Matteo
March 2012 – November 2012
Club legend Di Matteo was promoted from assistant manager to become the caretaker until the end of the season after Villas-Boas’ exit.
An unlikely Champions League triumph was achieved under Di Matteo (Picture: Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
He guided Chelsea past Napoli, Benfica and Pep Guardiola’s all-conquering Barca side to reach the Champions League final – and the rest is history.
Having also won the FA Cup with victory over Liverpool at Wembley, Di Matteo was given the manager’s job on a full time basis.
However, his tenure was short lived, with Di Matteo sacked three months into the following season after defeat to Juventus effectively knocked them out of the Champions League group stage.
Rafael Benitez
November 2012 – June 2013
Abramovich wasted no time in replacing Di Matteo but his appointment of Benitez later that day was deeply unpopular amongst Chelsea’s faithful due to comments he made about them during his time as Liverpool manager.
Despite the fan backlash, the Spaniard won the Europa League and helped the team finish in the top four.
Benitez publicly criticised the board for giving him the title of interim manager and he did not take part in the lap of honour at Stamford Bridge at the end of the season, despite the mood against him in the stands softening.
Antonio Conte
July 2016 – July 2018
Conte joined the club after Mourinho’s second spell came to an end and after Hiddink stepped in for a second time.
It was never quiet with Conte around (Picture: Chris Brunskill Ltd/Getty Images)
After a 3-0 away defeat to Arsenal early in the season, the fiery Italian famously switched to a back three which saw them win 15 of their next 17 games to help them on their way to the Premier League title.
Despite winning the FA Cup in his second season in charge, the fiery Italian’s relationship with Chelsea broke down and they were forced to pay Conte a £26 million compensation fee after losing a bitter legal dispute following his sacking.
Maurizio Sarri
July 2018 – June 2019
In an attempt to move away from Conte’s increasingly pragmatic style of football, the club hired Sarri who had turned Napoli into one of the most aesthetically pleasing sides in Europe.
‘Sarri ball’ didn’t quite have the desired effect in England the club were hoping for, mind, although Chelsea did finish in the top four and win the Europa League with victory over Arsenal in the final.
Sarri returned to Italy after just one year on these shores to become the new manager of Juventus, with the club also citing his wish to move closer to his elderly parents.
Frank Lampard
July 2019 – January 2021, April 2023 – present
Lampard’s homecoming was confirmed in the summer of 2019 having led Derby to the Championship play-off final in just his first season as a manager.
Lampard is taking care of things until the end of this term (Picture: Angel Martinez/Getty Images)
Lampard, who was working under a FIFA transfer embargo in his first season back at the Bridge, bled a number of academy graduates into the team such as Mason Mount and Reece James.
The former midfielder, who scored 211 goals for Chelsea as a player, ended the first season with a top four finish and an FA Cup final on his CV but was sacked midway through the second campaign having spent £200 million to only find themselves ninth.
Lampard was appointed as interim manager until the end of the season following Graham Potter’s sacking in April.
Thomas Tuchel
January 2021 – September 2022
Tuchel was the final appointment of the Abramovich regime and his impact on the team was immediate.
The Premier League giants went 13 games unbeaten in all competitions in Tuchel’s first few months, with their good form extending to the Champions League final victory against Manchester City.
The following season saw them lose the Carabao Cup and FA Cup finals to Liverpool – having also lost the previous year’s FA Cup final to Leicester – but Chelsea did end the season with the UEFA Super Cup and the Club World Cup.
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Abramovich sold the club to Boehly, who sacked Tuchel just weeks into the 2022/23 season amid poor form and reported tensions over transfer strategy.
Graham Potter
September 2022 – April 2023
Boehly drafted in Potter from Brighton, but from the very off he was fighting a losing battle as the club felt the effects of their new owner’s scattergun approach to the transfer market.
Potter was unable to work his magic (Picture: Clive Rose/Getty Images)
Forced to work with a bloated squad, Potter’s seven months only yielded 12 wins in 31 games in all competitions, leaving him with the lowest points-per-game return of any manager in the club’s history.
Despite Boehly repeatedly insisting he would be given time, Potter, who was criticised by some Chelsea fans for being ‘too nice’, was sacked with the club 11th in the table.
MORE : Who are Mauricio Pochettino’s coaching staff at Chelsea?
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Almost enough for a starting XI and subs.
