Chelsea reportedly continue to close in on the managerial appointment of Mauricio Pochettino.

Having been without a permanent head coach since April 2, the Blues currently have Frank Lampard in caretaker charge until the end of the season.

However, at a time when Chelsea are battling to finish in the top half of the Premier League standings after a dismal campaign, anticipation is building around the potential replacement for Graham Potter.

Pochettino has emerged as the main candidate to become the next incumbent in the Stamford Bridge dugout for a number of weeks after Luis Enrique and Julian Nagelsmann dropped down the pecking order.

Since the initial report, there has been no indication of any specific hold-ups in negotiations, just the relevant parties going through the process required.

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Nevertheless, Todd Boehly and co would prefer to finalise an appointment as soon as possible in order to formally begin plans for 2023-24 with Chelsea facing a turbulent period to meet FFP criteria.

According to Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano, further progress has been made in discussions behind the scenes since the start of the week.

Romano claims that talks are 'ready to progress to the final stages' with Pochettino seemingly waiting for more paperwork to be completed.

The Argentine will have already been monitoring Chelsea's recent performances, the latest resulting in a 3-1 victory over Bournemouth which ended a six-game losing streak.

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That said, there is expected to be official collaboration with the current management once his arrival is made official, presumably before the end of the season.

Earlier this week, reports emerged stating that Pochettino was eager to strengthen three positions in an attempt to boost Chelsea's chances of an instant revival.

Given their financial outlay over the past two transfer windows, that must coincide with a wide array of departures, some more likely than others.

While Pochettino is believed to want to retain the services of Mason Mount, it has been suggested that the academy graduate is no closer to penning fresh terms.