I saw Mauricio Pochettino do something in the second half yesterday which may have saved his job at Chelsea

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As is par for the course when you are in charge of Chelsea, there is already some serious pressure on the shoulders of Mauricio Pochettino.

It does look as if it’s showing at times too. He was the recipient of yet another yellow card last night as the Blues were holding on to a narrow lead.

I suppose at this stage, there can be little to complain about when the club are actually winning games at Stamford Bridge, but there is certainly still a disjointed feeling to everything going on.

In a sense, the manager made a decision in the second half which could well keep him in his job.

He was forced to configure an attack that didn’t include either Raheem Sterling or Cole Palmer, after they were both suspended for picking up their fifth yellow cards of the season.

Seeing Christopher Nkunku make his first start for the club was certainly a positive, however the decision to hand Ian Maatsen a first start of the season too in what seemed a right wing role looked an odd one.

Madueke substitution could save Pochettino’s job

We have been calling for the Dutchman to start a game for quite a while now, but ideally playing in his natural position of left-back where there are few obvious alternatives right now.

Eventually, the introduction of Noni Madueke brought a much needed spark to the Chelsea attack, just as it looked like the game was petering out.

The England U21 star won a penalty for the Blues out of very little late on, which he had the confidence to convert himself as the game approached added time.

Clearly playing with a point to prove, his performance last night may have set him up for a start against Luton Town on the 30th of December, and potentially kept his boss in a job for the time being.