'I was sacked...': Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino ahead of return to Tottenham Hotspur

Mauricio Pochettino has reflected on the prospect of facing boos from Tottenham Hotspur fans when his Chelsea side face his former London team.Pochettino said he will take whatever the Tottenham fans deliver in his stride.

The decision by Pochettino to join his former club'sfierce cross-city rivals has not gone down well with a section of supporters at theTottenham Hotspur Stadium. However, Pochettino said it wasn't him that severed ties with the club.

"I am going to accept what they will show. I didn’t decide to leave. We parted ways because I was sacked. It’s not a criticism of the club...but we didn’t decide to leave. Maybe we would still be there," said Pochettino.

Despite Pochettino's move to Stamford Bridge, it is worth noting that the Argentine had an outstanding five and a half years at Spurs. Under his tenure, Spurs left the ignominy of a mid-table club and turned into a top-four competitor whilst coming perilously close to a Champions League trophy.

Pochettino lauds Daniel Levy

The Chelsea boss recalled his working relationship with Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy and recalled how he texted him.

“Daniel is really clever. It is amazing, the job he is doing for Tottenham. You see Tottenham 20 years ago and now, how it changed, how it moved on. You need to recognise his job.”

"He sent a text when I signed here, wishing the best to me and to everyone. We need to be natural. Nearly six years working together. How many things happened in six years? Good and not so good! We cannot forget our relationship now."

While Pochettino has had a rocky start to life at the Bridge, his compatriot Ange Postecoglou who took charge of Spurs at the start of the summer has had an unbeaten record so far. It will be the first time the two managers face each other.

Despite another record splurge on new players in the transfer market, Chelsea sit 11th in the table, 14 points behind of Tottenham.

But the Blues could be boosted by the return of captain Reece James to the starting line-up in the Premier League for the first time since the opening weekend of the season.

(With inputs from agencies)