Chelsea midfielder Mason Mount can become a key player under Mauricio Pochettino if both end up crossing paths at Stamford Bridge, journalist Dean Jones has suggested.
What's the latest news involving Mason Mount and Mauricio Pochettino?
As per The Mirror, Chelsea caretaker boss Frank Lampard recently spoke to media over the future of Mount in a press conference, stating when asked if he'd played his last game for the club:
"I don’t know the answer to that, it’s a conversation between Mason and the club, so I don’t know. It’s not final at this point and we’ll have to see because those conversations are ongoing.
"It’s a shame for me personally because I think everyone knows how I feel about working with Mason and I like to think he feels the same about me, and we could have done with him in the games we’ve played already this season. But the bigger picture is something that’s going to become clearer in the next weeks and months, and that will be the club and Mason together having conversations."
The Evening Standard have revealed that the £80k-a-week ace has resumed contract talks with Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly over extending his terms at the club, which are set to run out in the summer of 2024.
The report also states that the Blues have slapped a £70 million price tag on the Portsmouth-born man to ward off interest in his services from Liverpool, Arsenal, Newcastle United, Manchester United and Manchester United.
Of course, there is a strong possibility that if Mount chooses to stay, he could find himself linking up with ex-Tottenham Hotspur manager Pochettino, who is in 'advanced talks' to permanently succeed Graham Potter at Stamford Bridge, as per BBC Sport.
Writing in his column on GIVEMESPORT, Jones thinks that Mount is a player that would suit Pochettino's tactical methods down to the ground.
Jones suggested to GMS: "Of all the players Poch is set to inherit in the new job, perhaps none seem more likely to thrive under him than 24-year-old Mount. A typical Pochettino Premier League line-up could see Mount play an advanced role in a 4-2-3-1 formation and as the counter-pressing figure in that team his levels from past Chelsea seasons could quickly re-emerge."
How key could Mason Mount become under Mauricio Pochettino's stewardship?
Given that Pochettino does prefer to operate in a high-pressing system, there is real potential that Mount could be used as the linchpin to initiate pressure on opposition backlines in advanced areas of the pitch.
The Argentinian coach operated a similar structure to his side involving Christian Eriksen when he was at Tottenham, despite the Danish midfielder initially struggling to adapt to his role in the side, eventually leading him to become one of Spurs' key men in forcing turnovers during that period and gaining his team possession in dangerous offensive pockets.
In light of his inconsistent form this term, there will also be question marks over how to get Mount back to putting up impressive goal contribution numbers. In 2022/23, the England international has registered just three goals and six assists in 35 appearances, as per Transfermarkt.
Compared to 2021/22, Mount lodged 13 goals and 16 assists in 53 outings, as per the same outlet, showing that there is some work to do in order to get him back to his best at Stamford Bridge.
FBRef show that Mount ranks in the top 1% of midfielders for touches in the attacking penalty area across Europe's top five divisions, managing to complete 3.97 per 90 minutes across the last 365 days at the time of writing, showing that Pochettino would have a lot to work with if he could convince the Cobham graduate to stay in west London beyond the summer.
It'll be an interesting few months ahead as we wait to find out what the future will hold for Mount come the start of next season.