Nine years on, Mauricio Pochettino still wants that trophy and he’s no longer asking quietly.
The former Tottenham manager has called on the Premier League to strip Chelsea of their 2016-17 title and award it retrospectively to Spurs, reigniting a debate that resurfaced after Chelsea were fined £10.75 million for historical financial breaches.
The Premier League handed down the fine on Thursday, confirming Chelsea broke rules between 2011 and 2018 by failing to disclose payments tied to transfers and third parties.
That omission is exactly what frustrates Pochettino.
“We should win one Premier League, we should have been awarded it,” he said, reviving memories of a Tottenham campaign that still stands as the club’s best Premier League finish.
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His argument leans hard on fairness. Chelsea racked up 93 points that season, winning 30 of 38 matches. Tottenham finished seven points behind on 86, a club record built on 26 wins and just four defeats. Pochettino believes that gap might never have existed if both clubs had operated under identical financial rules.
“We didn’t compete before the start of the season with the same card,” he argued, suggesting undisclosed dealings gave Chelsea room Tottenham never had. “Maybe with the same rules, we could’ve signed some players that would have made the team better or scored more goals.”
He stopped short of attacking Conte’s achievement directly, careful to separate the coaching from the conduct.
“I don’t say that Chelsea didn’t play well, that Conte was not great. I don’t say that. I don’t want the message to be twisted.” But he drew a hard line on consequences: “If you broke the rules, then ‘ciao’ you need to give it to another team. I don’t know why that didn’t happen.”
Chelsea’s breaches came to light only after the club changed ownership in 2022, with the new regime self-reporting the historical issues and cooperating throughout the investigation a factor that likely shaped the Premier League’s decision to fine rather than dock points or revoke the title.
Pochettino, notably, went on to manage Chelsea himself during the 2023-24 season, adding an unusual layer to his current stance. He insisted he’d apply the same standard regardless of allegiance.
“If we were at Tottenham and broke the rules, I’d admit the same: ‘We don’t deserve the title because we broke the rules.’”
Despite his campaign, nothing changes on paper. Chelsea remain the officially recognised 2016-17 champions, and Tottenham stay filed under second place a finish that, statistically, remains the high-water mark of the Pochettino era at the club.
