Mauricio Pochettino receives a warm welcome as the ex-Spurs manager returns to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in charge of bitter London rivals Chelsea

Mauricio Pochettino received a warm welcome as he returned to the Tottenham Hotspur stadium for the first time since being sacked by the club in 2019 for Spurs’ Premier League match against Chelsea.

And it was a dream return for the Blues boss, whose side secured a 4-1 victory in a fiery match reminiscent of the infamous ‘Battle of the Bridge’.

Having managed PSG before returning to the Premier League to replace Graham Potter at Spurs’ fierce rivals Chelsea earlier this summer, the Blues boss hugged Ange Postecoglou as the pair stepped into the dugout ahead of the match.

While some boos were expected, former Spurs player Jermaine Jenas was told by TNT Sports that Pochettino had ‘crossed the line’ by joining the south London team and that he was walking in ‘boo central’. He received a very different reception, with fans in the stadium appearing to applaud the managers.

The Argentine manager had previously been in charge of Tottenham for five years, including leading them to the Champions League final in 2019, but failed to win silverware with the London team.

He was seen hugging new Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou ahead of the match

Pochettino previously managed Tottenham for five years before being sacked

After an 18-month spell at PSG, he was once again out of work, with the Blues making a remarkable move for the former Tottenham boss, raising eyebrows among many Spurs fans.

Pochettino has also been linked with a sensational return to North London, stating in his pre-match press conference that he would be open to a return to Spurs.

When asked if he would consider a return to his old team, he said: ‘Hopefully I can stay here (at Chelsea) until I die!

’20 or 25 years, but in football you never know. It (Tottenham) is a club, especially if I’m not working, maybe if one day they want me, why not?

‘Who knows? It’s a club like Southampton or Espanyol or Newell’s Old Boys. It’s just like life: you never know what’s going to happen tomorrow.’

It was a heated start at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with Dejan Kulusevski netting the home side a goal in the opening six minutes of the match.

Destiny Udogie could have been sent off in the build-up after a two-footed tackle on Raheem Sterling, but was only shown a yellow card.

There was more controversy moments later after Chelsea conceded two goals from Sterling and Moises Caicedo was disallowed, before Cristian Romero appeared to kick out at Levi Colwill, which was reviewed by VAR.

Pochettino returned to Tottenham on Monday evening for the first time since becoming Chelsea manager

Pochettino previously managed Tottenham for five years before being sacked

Ange Postecoglou was appointed manager of Tottenham this summer and is flourishing

The referees ruled that there had been no foul, but Romero would be shown a red card shortly afterwards for a rash challenge on Enzo Fernandez in the penalty area.

Michael Oliver awarded the penalty, while Cole Palmer stepped up to level the scores.

Spurs were reduced to nine men after the break after Udogie picked off Sterling and earned a second yellow card.

Chelsea would come back again in the second half, with Nicolas Jackson scoring a late hat-trick to secure the win.

More to follow…