Gus Poyet knows what it takes to succeed at the highest level. The Uruguayan spent four years at Chelsea. It was before the Roman Abrahmovich era, but that did not stop him from winning five trophies with the Blues.
Poyet would taste success elsewhere as well. He won the Copa del Rey and UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup with Real Zaragoza. For his national team, he won the 1995 Copa America. He was also voted as the best player in his position at the tournament.
Even as a manager, he has lifted a fair few trophies. His most recent spell came at Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, with whom Poyet won the double before stepping down.
So, when it comes to Chelsea’s recent problems and finding their way back to being successful, Poyet’s view does carry a lot of weight.
Gus Poyet talks about Chelsea ownership, Liam Rosenior and more with ReadChelsea
We, at ReadChelsea, had the chance to speak with the Uruguayan legend recently. Gus Poyet, speaking with Gambling.com, who rank top UK online casinos, shared his thoughts.
ReadChelsea: Where do you think the new Chelsea ownership have gone wrong over the last four seasons?
Gus: To say it went wrong with respect isn’t right. You look at six or seven months ago and Chelsea have just won another European competition. Then they followed up with the Club World Cup and were looking ahead to this Premier League season with many positives and lots of top young players with a manager who had delivered two trophies. So, forward to now and it’s not a fair review of the four years, so it’s not fair. You look at Chelsea and you say they should be winning Premier League and Champions Leagues, but it takes time. But for Chelsea now it’s stability, keep everything in house with no external noise and everything can calm down, try and win the FA Cup and qualify for the Champions League and that would leave them in a good situation.
ReadChelsea: Do you think there is a quick fix for Chelsea’s problems this summer?
Gus: Things move quickly in football. You look at Arsenal and a few weeks ago they were winning the quadruple, now they only have two trophies. So it’s not a case of a quick fix. I share again, for Chelsea the fix is to be stable, keep everything in-house now, focus on the Premier League and qualifying for the Champions League and winning the FA Cup. So that is what is needed now. Stop the outside noise and ensure the team is together to achieve the goals they want to achieve this season.
ReadChelsea: Do you think Liam Rosenior deserves more time if Chelsea don’t qualify for the Champions League?
Gus: He is the manager and you can’t keep chopping and changing managers every season. This brings no stability, players are being told one thing and then another, so it doesn’t help them or players listening to the coach if they play one style and then a new coach comes in and he wants to play another. Also, with players coming in and out and in and out of favour, this is not good and doesn’t help in the long term. So yes, Rosenior is the coach and can be next season too. They are building now with a new young team.
ReadChelsea: If Chelsea are to be contenders in England and Europe again, which of their current players do you think they should build around?
Gus: You have many top players in the squad. World cup winners, Euro winners, so these are top players in Enzo, Cucurella, you have Palmer and James too and Caicedo is a key part as well. Pedro was bought in the summer, so you have to back the players you have. You have top young wingers too in Estevao, who is a player you definitely want in your side.
ReadChelsea: How do you see Chelsea doing next season if they bring in some experienced and Premier League-proven players into this squad?
Gus: Chelsea are progressing, so challenging for all the trophies they enter is the objective. Premier League, domestic cups and hopefully Champions League too. It’s simple for a team like Chelsea, they should be going deep in all these competitions and the club has a habit of winning trophies, so the aim is to continue this.
