Mauricio Pochettino discusses his choice to join Chelsea despite a disastrous 2022-23 season as he begins his new job.

Mauricio Pochettino has stated that the opportunity to work with high-quality players drew him to the Chelsea position.

Pochettino started at Chelsea on July 3 and gave his first interview since taking the position, with the former Tottenham Hotspur and Paris Saint-Germain manager entrusted with turning things around at Stamford Bridge following a disastrous 2022-23 season.

The team ended 12th under Thomas Tuchel, Graham Potter, and Frank Lampard, but Pochettino claimed it was still an interesting position to accept because of the quality at his disposal.

WHAT THEY SAID: Speaking to the official Chelsea website, Pochettino said: “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.

“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. We are here to try to help the club and the fans. In the end, the most important thing in football is for them to be happy and to feel proud of us and in the way we approach games. The players need to know that. Of course, there are always up and downs in the history of football, but Chelsea is a club that it is impossible to have these up and downs. We need to be sure that we bring what the club needs to be at the top because the history of the club is to be at the top.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Pochettino joins the club with Chelsea’s squad in a state of flux after an incredible spending spree in the summer 2022 and January 2023 windows – in which the club spent more than £500 million ($635m) on the likes of Enzo Fernandez, Mykhailo Mudryk and others who are all yet to prove themselves. There have already been some high-profile exits this summer too, with the club in need of trimming their numbers and wage bill.

IN TWO PHOTOS:ChelseaGetty Images

WHAT NEXT FOR CHELSEA? Pochettino’s first game in charge will be a friendly against Wrexham in the USA on July 19 as he gets into his work during their pre-season tour of the States.