Soccer

Mauricio Pochettino attracted to join Chelsea by club’s ‘winning culture’

Former Spurs manager is tasked with bringing success back after poor season despite massive investment

Chelsea's New Head Coach Mauricio Pochettino at Chelsea Training Ground on Monday. Photograph: Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Chelsea's New Head Coach Mauricio Pochettino at Chelsea Training Ground on Monday. Photograph: Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Jacob Steinberg
Mon Jul 03 2023 - 18:38

Mauricio Pochettino has said that he was attracted to Chelsea by their winning culture and has vowed to bring the good times back to Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea have struggled since being bought by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital last summer and are in the middle of a difficult rebuild after finishing 12th last season. However Pochettino, who is preparing to implement his vision after officially taking over as head coach, was full of positivity after arriving at his new side’s training base on Monday.

The former Tottenham manager praised Chelsea’s history, calling them the best team in England over the past 15 years, and said it was part of what attracted him to the job.

“I think it’s important and it’s a culture of winning,” Pochettino told Chelsea’s website. “In the last 10, 12, 15 years, Chelsea is the greatest team in England. I know very well the Premier League and what the culture of Chelsea means. I think our fans are excited to again be on the road of trying to win.

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“Of course, we are excited. We are excited to work with a very young team, with a different approach than in the past. But I think we all need to understand that we have to work really hard and create a very good atmosphere at the training ground to build success for the team in the next few years.”

Chelsea will not be in Europe next season and endured a difficult year under their new ownership. There was shock after they sacked Thomas Tuchel and replaced the German with Graham Potter last summer. Potter’s appointment backfired and his brutal sacking in April was followed by Bruno Saltor and Frank Lampard both having spells as interim manager.

Chelsea did not want to rush their next appointment and eventually alighted upon Pochettino following an exhaustive process. The Argentinian had been out of work since leaving Paris Saint-Germain last summer. He has signed a three-year deal and his staff will include his No 2, Jesús Pérez, his first-team coach, Miguel D’Agostino, his goalkeeping coach, Toni Jiménez, and his son Sebastiano, a sports scientist.

Pochettino is not fazed by the size of the task in front of him. “We are so excited, and I know Chelsea very well, it is one of the greatest clubs in the world,” he said. “So of course, it was easy for us to make the decision to move here.”

Chelsea are in the middle of a clearout and are targeting young players this summer. That could suit Pochettino’s fast pressing football.

“It is exciting for us because we love good players, players with the capacity and then talent, but also we want people who want to be with us at this club and be really open to help the club achieve want we want,” he said. “From the beginning, the owners and sporting directors were very clear about the project and we were very excited to join them in this project.”

Pochettino’s training sessions are notoriously difficult and he will use pre-season to get his players up to speed. Chelsea will step up their preparations for the new season, which opens with a home game against Liverpool on August 13th, when they head out to the US on tour later this month.