- Chelsea prepare to face Liverpool in this Sunday’s Carabao Cup final
- Mauricio Pochettino wants to win his first trophy since joining the Blues
- Mauricio Pochettino would have been a perfect fit for Liverpool if Jurgen Klopp had announced his departure 12 months ago – It’s All Kickoff Podcast
Chris Sutton has claimed that the Carabao Cup final will be “like a World Cup final” for Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino.
The Blues are scheduled to face Liverpool at Wembley this Sunday, with the Argentine aiming to win his first trophy since arriving at Stamford Bridge in the summer.
It has been a volatile and chaotic season for Chelsea, with some inconsistent performances as they lost 10 and won 10 of their 25 league games.
But since the nadir of the season, when they lost 4-2 at home to Wolves in early February, the Blues have beaten Aston Villa and Crystal Palace and drew 1-1 with Man City last weekend.
And former Premier League winner Sutton told Mail Sport’s ‘It’s All Kickoff’ podcast with co-host Dominic King that the showdown with Jurgen Klopp’s side was one of the greatest of Pochettino’s tenure. It felt like it could be an important moment.
“I think this is a very important cup,” he said. “But this cup is recognized as a trophy that many teams don’t want to win.
“A lot of coaches don’t think about winning until they get to the semi-finals. And that’s really important to them.
“But for any club, winning your first trophy is a really big thing. This season has been so disappointing that for Pochettino it’s like a World Cup final.
“Many times we thought Chelsea would turn the tide, or they would turn the tide and get better from now on. And they have consistently let themselves down.
“But in terms of Pochettino’s perception and the difficulty of his job, I think if they win it will be huge for him.”
Liverpool lead the Premier League with a 25-point lead over 10th-placed Chelsea, and their recent 4-1 win over the Blues at Anfield means they are favorites to tie the table. ing.
But with the Reds’ injury list growing longer as the game progresses, plus Chelsea’s improved recent performances, Sutton doesn’t think the final is a foregone conclusion.
“After the game at Anfield I was thinking about the Carabao Cup final and basically how Chelsea were going to do with Liverpool,” he added.
“I didn’t give Chelsea a chance, but because of Chelsea’s recent form and Liverpool’s long injury list, I think this is a 50/50 game.
“The game a few weeks ago wasn’t 50-50. It was very one-sided. Liverpool were very good. They were very dominant.”