Former Real Madrid manager 'spotted' at Stamford Bridge as pressure mounts on Mauricio Pochettino

A former Real Madrid manager was spotted at Stamford Bridge as Chelsea suffered yet another crushing home defeat in the Premier League.

The Blues lost their second home game of the season as Mauricio Pochettino's side succumbed to Unai Emery's Aston Villa last weekend.

Ollie Watkin's second-half strike condemned Chelsea to their third league defeat of the season, having also lost to West Ham United and Nottingham Forest.

Pressure is already mounting on Pochettino, who only joined the club in the summer.

The 51-year-old has called for patience amid Chelsea's miserable start to the new campaign.

But if Todd Boehly did pull the plug on the former Southampton, Tottenham and Paris Saint-Germain boss, then could Julen Lopetegui replace him at the helm?

Well, Lopetegui was in attendance at Stamford Bridge for Chelsea's latest defeat, according to Birmingham World.

The Spaniard, who managed Wolves last season, was spotted both entering and leaving a hospitality suite and is said to be holding out for a return to the Premier League.

He had a short spell at Wolves, where he led the club to 13th place in the table. The 57-year-old left the Midlands outfit in the summer.

Lopetegui, who has taken charge of Real, Sevilla and the Spain national team, has been out of work since leaving Wolves, but seems to be eyeing a managerial gig in England's top flight.

Julen Lopetegui in the dugout at Molineux. Image: Getty

Pochettino, meanwhile, said his Chelsea team need to 'grow up' following their defeat to Villa.

"We need to grow up like a team, not only in an individual way," he said. "I think players like Nico who are so young and feeling the Premier League, they need time.

"In this type of game, we are competing and want to win and football is about winning. But also players, when they are young, need to learn, and experience and make mistakes. That’s why we feel disappointed as there are too many situations like this."

SPORTbible are on WhatsApp! We've launched a dedicated news channel to send you the latest news, features and plenty more directly on WhatsApp and all you need to do to sign up is click through to our one-way broadcast channel here for 'SPORTbible News' to appear in the 'Updates' tab on your WhatsApp.

Topics: Julen Lopetegui, Mauricio Pochettino, Chelsea, Football

Nasir Jabbar

Nasir Jabbar is a journalist at SPORTbible. He graduated from Bath Spa University with a BA in Media Communications. He's a combat sport aficionado and has contributed to MMA websites AddictedMMA and CagePotato. Nasir has covered some of the biggest fights, while interviewing the likes of Conor McGregor, Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury and Darren Till. He's also an avid Bristol City fan.

@NasJabbar