There will be a very intriguing reunion during the 2023/24 Premier League season when Mauricio Pochettino returns to face former side Tottenham.
The Argentine is greatly admired by Spurs' fanbase but the next time he will visit north London will be with Chelsea, the side Tottenham fans arguably hate the most after Arsenal.
Given his qualities as a coach and the firepower in that Chelsea squad, the Blues could be considered the favourites when the two teams meet next season. Here's when the two sides will square off in 2023/24.
When do Tottenham face Chelsea in 2023/24?
The first match between the two clubs will see Tottenham host Pochettino's Chelsea on the weekend of 4 November 2023.
There is then a big gap before Pochettino hosts his old team at Stamford Bridge, providing things have gone well enough for him to still be in a job. That game is set for 24 February 2024.
The dates mean neither side will be able to deal a fatal blow to each other's season. The second game is too far away from the end of the campaign to be a decider for anything, but there will certainly be an added level of intrigue and narrative for both of the games. The reception from Tottenham fans towards Pochettino in the home game is going to be fascinating.
What did Mauricio Pochettino do at Tottenham?
Pochettino joined Tottenham as the head coach for the 2014/15 season and inherited a squad with the likes of Harry Kane, Erik Lamela, Nacer Chadli, Paulinho, Christian Eriksen, Kyle Walker, Jan Vertonghen and Hugo Lloris.
He took Tottenham to a fifth-placed finish and the League Cup final in his first season with an interesting style of football. A better campaign followed as third place took Tottenham into the Champions League.
Finishing second in 2016/17 further suggested Tottenham were heading in the right direction, eventually coming seven points behind Chelsea in first place.
He took Spurs to third and fourth in the next two seasons before things finally went awry in the 2019/20 season, when he was replaced by Jose Mourinho after 17 matches. Pochettino ended his time at Tottenham with a points-per-game record of 1.84 after 293 matches.
There is no team Pochettino has coached for longer in his career than Tottenham.
Tottenham's Premier League finishes under Mauricio Pochettino
Mauricio Pochettino's record against Tottenham
It feels like a very long time ago now, but Tottenham weren't Mauricio Pochettino's first club in the Premier League. He was the Southampton boss for a season and a half before he made the move to north London.
He managed three games against what would become his new club in 18 months. He took charge at St Mary's in January 2013, replacing Nigel Adkins, and kept Southampton in the top flight
before guiding them to an eighth-placed finish the following year with their then highest-ever Premier League points tally.
Despite having such a successful spell at Southampton, Pochettino had little joy when he faced his future employers.
There was an element of narrative in the first game between Pochettino and Tottenham. The match at White Hart Lane was locked at 0-0 until the 86th minute when Gareth Bale scored against his old team.
The first game of the next season had more goals. This time at St Mary's, efforts from Adam Lallana and Emmanuel Adebayor sent the two sides in level at half time before an own goal put Spurs ahead. Rickie Lambert made it 2-2 but Adebayor popped up with another.
The last match between Pochettino and Tottenham was a thriller. Spurs went 2-0 down after strikes from Jay Rodriguez and Adam Lallana, but Christian Eriksen netted twice before Gylfi Sigurdsson's stoppage time winner.
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This article was originally published on 90min as When Mauricio Pochettino will face former side Tottenham with Chelsea in 2023/24.
