Chelsea star criticises Mauricio Pochettino in brutally honest rant and confirms he’ll probably leave

Mauricio Pochettino’s removal as manager of Chelsea came as a shock to some of their players but one star seems overjoyed to see the back of him.

The Blues have poached Enzo Maresca from Leicester City and their new boss will be charged with bringing success back to Stamford Bridge in the coming season.

Armando Broja seems happy that Chelsea has axed Pochettino after the Argentine coach embarrassed him by publicly telling the striker to ‘change his body language.’

Asked for his reaction to Pochettino’s remark, Broja told The Athletic: “A little bit [surprising], because I have been through so much with the injury and he was saying something about me needing to be more happy.

“I did feel like I could have had more trust and belief [from him]. I basically just got thrown into the Premier League straight away – which is tough to deal with anyway, but I had no build-up.

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“I have always been quite hard on myself because I expect a lot, but I have always had a really good attitude when it comes to training and games.

“I always try to do my best for the team; try to win. I am not a player who sulks or whinges.”

Armando Broja: ‘I just wanted answers’

Broja was ultimately sent out on loan to Fulham in January so he could get more playing time, but he felt he should have been given more of a chance at Chelsea.

“I did think when Nicolas Jackson went away with Senegal to the Africa Cup of Nations [at the start of 2024] that I would be given an opportunity to play a load of games,” Broja added.

“I started three times in January, but I thought there were times I could have been utilised more. I got the feeling people expected me to just run past three, four players and put it in the bottom corner.

“But I was fighting to get my fitness and things were going through my head like, ‘What will happen to me in January?’ – there was a lot of speculation around me at the time, whether I would go on loan.

“I just wanted answers from the club, a bit of reassurance, and I didn’t get that. In the end, I decided to go on loan because I wanted to get more minutes.”

Broja open to Chelsea exit as Prem clubs circle

Broja confirmed in the interview that he is willing to leave Chelsea this summer if he feels he won’t get more opportunities under Maresca.

“If I need to go somewhere else to get back in my groove, then of course I would want to do that,’ the 22-year-old said.

“As a player, there is no better feeling than being on the pitch and knowing you have a club and a team who defends you; a club who allow you to make mistakes because they know you will become something. But right now, all my focus is on doing my best for Albania at the Euros.”

As previously reported by TEAMtalk, Wolves, Everton and Crystal Palace are said to be interested in signing Broja on a permanent basis this summer.

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