News surfaced that Pellegrini was returning to Chile for a few days during the international break, and I for one am glad.

I know this isn’t an opinion everyone shares, but hear me out…

While I’m fully aware footballers and managers are paid millions, I still believe they should have some quality of life and opportunity to recharge. Should you need to recharge after only four games in charge? Ideally not, but given such an awful month, I’d say yes.

Imagine travelling abroad to begin what you believe will be an incredible job. Then you have the worst start ever. You’re given the tools to perform, putting in the work with the team but it just isn’t working yet. On top of this, you’re being criticised by millions and have the pressure of an entire fan base desperate for a win.

For this reason, I think it will have done Pellegrini some good to get away from England for a couple of days, see his family and come back with a fresh mind, having had time to reflect on what’s gone wrong so far.

Pellegrini is fully aware of the size of the problem, making it very clear there are no excuses. He’s had success in the Premier League. He knows we now face a tough couple of months, but this doesn’t mean we should force him to stay in England and force the team to train every day (particularly given our injury record).

Time and a bit of rest can be a brilliant tactic when it all starts going wrong.

We saw the players head to Miami last season when they simply weren’t performing. Tensions were at an all-time high and fans went absolutely mental at the news. A holiday… when you’re playing badly? It sounded ridiculous.

HOWEVER, the squad came back stronger than before, clearly having a new lease of life and having got away from the negative publicity and press. Something which I can only see as a positive.

For these exact reasons, I’m GLAD Pellegrini went home to Chile for a couple of days. And I look forward to his return when we go again.

Until next time,

COYI!

Holly