Chelsea glimpse bright future under Mauricio Pochettino as Man City draw highlights signs of progress

Mauricio Pochettino offered profuse apologies for his furious reaction to the final whistle in Chelsea's eight-goal draw with Manchester City. "I crossed the limit," he said afterwards.

The Chelsea boss, incensed to see one final attack cut short, had to be pulled away from referee Anthony Taylor having already berated the fourth official. "It's not a good image for me and for football, this type of behaviour," he added in his press conference.

No arguments there. Pochettino was booked and it could have been worse. For those of a Chelsea persuasion, though, particularly those in attendance on an exhilarating evening at Stamford Bridge, it only added to the sense of something stirring under this manager.

Chelsea are five points worse off than at the same stage of last season but a fanbase accustomed to the emotional intensity of Jose Mourinho, Antonio Conte and Thomas Tuchel are taking to Pochettino in a way they never did the anodyne Graham Potter.

Recent results help, of course. The draw with Manchester City came only six days after the 4-1 win over Tottenham. But watching Pochettino from the press box on Sunday, just behind the home dugout, underlined the power of passion and personality too.

Long before his outburst at the final whistle, he could be seen screaming with rage at the sight of Manuel Akanji scoring City's second from a free header. Even after it, though, there were smiles and bear hugs for players, starting with his former charge Kyle Walker.

Those scenes were a reminder of his ability to build connections and the same quality was evident in Chelsea's performance. Beforehand, he had insisted they were no underdogs, even against this City. "We need to go there trying to be protagonists," he said.

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