Chelsea have refuted reports from Portugal suggesting that Ruben Amorim’s recent visit to London was to discuss a managerial role with them, rather than West Ham, as a potential successor to Mauricio Pochettino.
Sporting’s head coach, Amorim, issued an apology after being seen in London shortly before his team’s scheduled match against Porto, leading to speculation that he was there to negotiate with West Ham.
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Amorim had previously been considered a likely candidate to replace Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool. However, Liverpool’s appointment of Arne Slot from Feyenoord prompted Amorim to explore other options, and it was rumored he had engaged in discussions with West Ham about succeeding David Moyes.
Contrary to these rumors, Portuguese reporter Pedro Sepulveda made the explosive claim that Chelsea had arranged Amorim’s trip, and that he had met with Chelsea’s board to talk about taking over from the beleaguered Pochettino.
Nonetheless, Chelsea swiftly dismissed these allegations, with The Telegraph’s Matt Law asserting that the club firmly denies funding Amorim’s travel to London.
They also confirmed that no meetings or discussions took place with Amorim during his visit, and any decisions regarding Pochettino’s future or a managerial search will be deferred until the end of the season.
Currently, Chelsea is struggling in ninth position in the Premier League standings, battling to secure a spot in European competitions next season. Pochettino’s position could be jeopardized if the team fails to qualify.
Pochettino’s future remains uncertain, with the team’s upcoming results and performances being critical to his continued tenure. Any indication of the team’s lack of effort would reflect poorly on him.
In the meantime, Amorim has expressed regret for his trip to London while Sporting is contending for the championship, acknowledging that it was an error to engage in discussions with another team during this crucial period.
‘Let’s get the elephant out of the room. I’ll talk about this once. The first thing is that the club was aware of my trip. It’s important and changes the context,’ Amorim said on Saturday.
‘The second situation, talking about the cloak of secrecy surrounding the trip. I “secretly” parked the car outside, passed around 15 people, took photos with people and got on the plane.
‘Therefore, remove a little bit of that thing that was done behind our backs, mainly from the club.
‘The most important point – my trip was a mistake. The timing was completely off, it didn’t seem right to me at the time.
‘It was inappropriate, even more so when I am so demanding with my players, I am always the first to say that each one’s individual problems cannot be overcome by the team and, therefore, it was my fault.
‘I have to accept it and live with it. Thinking coldly afterwards, it is very clear. It’s also not true that I didn’t explain to the players. I gave it to the players and the staff.
‘Now it’s time to move forward, also using the public part to apologise to Sporting fans, the staff and especially, publicly, to my players.’
