Mauricio Pochettino has called for Chelsea to be stripped of the 2016-17 Premier League title and for it to be handed to his former Tottenham Hotspur side, who finished as runners-up that season.

Antonio Conte's Chelsea team ended the campaign seven points ahead of Pochettino's Spurs. Since then, the club has been charged by the Premier League for historical breaches of competition rules, resulting in a £10.75 million fine in March. A six-point deduction that had been imposed was also set aside on appeal.

The charges stem from Chelsea's owners Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital self-reporting 74 breaches of Football Association rules following their purchase of the club in 2022. The club admitted to making £47 million in secret payments to unregistered agents and third parties across transfers between 2011 and 2018.

"We should have been awarded it"

Pochettino, who managed Spurs from 2014 to 2019, was unambiguous in his position. "We should win one title, one Premier League. We should have been awarded it," he said.

"[Chelsea] were punished, they admitted, so that's it? The title should be for the team that was second. It's true that we didn't compete with the same rules. It's completely fair to say that we didn't compete before the start of the season with the same card."

The Argentine also suggested that the uneven playing field may have cost his side key signings. "Maybe with the same rules, if we apply the same things, maybe we could've signed some players that would have made the team better or scored more goals," he added.

An undecorated but celebrated era

Despite guiding Tottenham to the UEFA Champions League final in 2019, Pochettino left the club without a trophy. That second-place Premier League finish in 2017 remained his best league result across his five seasons in charge.

Now serving as the coach of the United States national team, Pochettino stood firm on the controversy his words are likely to stir. "I'm not scared to say the truth. The Chelsea fans will be upset with me because I'm saying this, but if we were at Tottenham and broke the rules I'd admit the same," he said.