Mauricio Pochettino has urged those Chelsea players who will be a part of his squad next season to show their commitment to the club, regardless of whether they are playing or not.
The Chelsea boss is keen to bring in further additions to his squad this summer, particularly in the midfield area, and admits some players will have to leave the club in order for the squad not to be too big.
Last season’s interim boss Frank Lampard highlighted Chelsea’s oversized squad during his time in charge as a key factor behind the club’s disappointing season, telling the Diary of a CEO podcast: “The biggest thing about it was the size of the squad.
“The motivation of players who you’re not going to not play, or are out of the Champions League squad, or things like that, it’s like asking someone to do all the prep and then have someone else actually do the job.”
Blues defender Reece James also pointed to the issue ahead of Chelsea’s pre-season game with Newcastle, claiming that some players “probably didn’t want to be” at the club last season.
And Pochettino has urged those will be a part of the group to be fully committed to the cause.
“I think this type of thing, you cannot manage,” Pochettino explained.
“What is going on in behind, some players now are playing well for our team and we are so pleased and so happy, but maybe they are thinking to move, to go away from Chelsea for different circumstances.
“That is a thing that is not a big issue, that has happened always. It happened in the past and it is going to happen in the future also.
“I told before, players who will be here for the next season need to be happy, playing or not playing.
“If they believe that they need to be in the starting 11 and they’re not going to accept being on the bench because of the coach that Chelsea pay to choose the 11 players, it’s better to talk from now.
“If I don’t play and I don’t want to be here, perfect, but if I’m here I am committed, I am going to accept that you are the coach or the coaching staff, you are going to choose the players to play in every single game.
“It’s not a threat. We need to stop thinking ‘I come here to play’, no. I come here to help the club to achieve what we want, and then I need to convince the coaching staff that I deserve to play.
“It’s not about to be the coach myself, thinking like a coach, no. I am a player ready to let the coaching staff work. If not it’s impossible.
“That is why it’s always important to have the right players, right balance, and then accept what is going on.”
Chelsea continue to try to reach an agreement with Brighton for midfielder Moises Caicedo, with Pochettino reiterating his desire to strengthen in midfield following their 1-1 pre-season draw with Newcastle.
But the Blues boss accepts more incomings will mean “tough decisions” if Chelsea want to avoid similar problems to last season.
“Every game, three, four or five players cannot play and that makes it difficult because the mood is difficult,” he said.
“But it’s about creating a squad with good balance and people that have the opportunity to play and compete for a place.
“That is a big job and a challenge for us for the rest of the transfer window, to build a good relationship and good balance and then of course, if players are not happy because maybe they believe they are not going to play, we are going to find a solution with the club to fix the situation.
“What we cannot have is a massive squad, a bigger squad, where maybe players cannot be involved, and then it’s going to create a mess in the squad. Maybe less is more sometimes.
“That is why I need to make clear that we don’t need a bigger squad. We need 22, 23, 24 players with some youngsters and that’s it.
“I am so sorry, because maybe the decisions will be tough but we need to build a good and a balanced team if we want to compete for things.”
