Pochettino’s Call for Title Reallocation
Former Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino has stated that his team should be retrospectively awarded the 2016-17 Premier League title. This assertion comes in light of Chelsea‘s admitted financial rule breaches during the period. Pochettino, who led Spurs to a second-place finish that season, believes that the title should be stripped from Chelsea and given to the team that finished second.
Chelsea faced fines from the Football Association and the Premier League for multiple violations of rules, including the use of unlicensed agents and obscuring the nature of their transfer business between 2009 and 2022. The club was fined £10m by the FA in July and £10.75m by the Premier League in March. These breaches were self-reported by Chelsea’s new ownership in 2022, hoping to mitigate punishment.
Pochettino argued that if Chelsea admitted to breaking the rules, the title should go to the second-best team. He highlighted that his Spurs team finished seven points behind Antonio Conte‘s Chelsea in the 2016-17 season. He believes that both clubs did not compete under the same rules, suggesting that with equal regulations, Tottenham might have signed players who could have improved their team.
Impact of Key Players and Financial Breaches
The investigation into Chelsea’s financial activities revealed secret payments totalling £47m to unregistered agents and third parties for transfers between 2011 and 2018. Players involved in these transfers included Eden Hazard, Samuel Eto’o, Willian, Ramires, David Luiz, Andre Schurrle, and Nemanja Matic. Four of these players—Hazard, Willian, Luiz, and Matic—were part of the Chelsea squad in the 2016-17 season.
Hazard’s transfer from Lille in 2012 involved seven payments totalling £5.6m to an unregistered agent. In the 2016-17 season, Hazard started 36 Premier League games, scored 16 goals, and provided five assists. His contributions in four fixtures, including goals against West Ham and Manchester City, were estimated to be worth 10 points. Willian, whose transfer involved £19.2m in payments to two unregistered entities, also made significant contributions, scoring eight goals and providing eight assists, helping Chelsea secure eight points in four matches.
The transfers of Matic and Luiz, who were in their second spells at Chelsea during the 2016-17 season, were also scrutinised. Payments totalling £5.1m were made between 2012 and 2015 for “talent identification services” related to their registrations. Matic played 35 league games, providing an assist in a 2-1 win against Tottenham. Luiz started 33 matches and scored one goal in a 1-1 draw at Liverpool.
Reactions and Sporting Justice
Pochettino’s argument is that the attacking influence from players like Willian and Hazard, whose transfers were linked to the secret payments, proved to be the difference in the title race. He believes that the ability to sign such players through these means gave Chelsea a sporting advantage, enabling them to win trophies and attract further talent.
Despite Tottenham’s strong performance in 2016-17, winning 12 of their final 13 matches and finishing with a club record of 86 points, Chelsea secured the title with 93 points. Spurs’ tally of 86 points would have been sufficient to win the title in the 2015-16 season, but not in 2016-17. Pochettino suggested that the lack of a sporting sanction for Chelsea’s breaches sends a negative message to clubs, incentivising rule-breaking.
Fans of other clubs, such as Everton and Nottingham Forest, have also pointed out the disparity in punishments, as their clubs faced points deductions for less severe financial breaches. While some Tottenham fans, like Chris Paouros, co-founder of Proud Lilywhites, agree with Pochettino’s sentiment, acknowledging that the “rules have to mean something,” others like Tristan Foot, secretary of the Tottenham Hotspur Supporters’ Trust, believe that even a retrospective title would be celebrated as a victory over Chelsea, despite the delay.
Pochettino, who managed Chelsea in the 2023-24 season, maintains that his issue is not with the players or coaches, but with the principle of fair play. He stated that if rules are broken, the title should be given to another team, emphasizing that all teams should operate under the same regulations.
The FA’s case against Chelsea centred on 74 breaches of FA Rule E1.2.
Source: bbc.co.uk