Chelsea boss Pochettino fires transfer warning to wantaway stars as he fears Blues squad will turn into a ‘mess’
MAURICIO POCHETTINO has warned Chelsea’s squad will turn into a “mess” if they do not get it right in this summer’s transfer window.
And the Blues boss has bullishly told some of his wantaway stars: tell me NOW if you don’t want to commit to the club.
During their pre-season tour of the States, Poch has had a 29-man playing group to choose from, opting to heavily rotate in their three games so far.
The Argentine coach has wanted to look over all of his options before making a decision on their futures, but has now admitted that it is getting close to crunch time for some of them.
Following their 1-1 draw with Newcastle in Atlanta in the early hours of Thursday morning, after goals from Nicolas Jackson and Miguel Almiron, Poch said: “We have 29 players here and it is massive. It’s going to create a mess in the squad.
“At the moment the dynamic is very good, but in every game three, four, five players cannot play and that is difficult because the mood is difficult.
“It is about creating a squad with good balance and people who have the opportunity to play and can compete for their place.
“If players are not happy because they believe they are not going to play, we are going to find a solution with the club and fix the situation.
“Maybe less is more and more is less. It is not mathematic. That is why I need to make clear we don’t need a big squad. We need 22, 23, 24 players with some younger and that’s it.
“I am so sorry because maybe the decision will be tough but we need to build a good and a balanced team who want to compete for things.”
DREAM TEAM IS LIVE – JOIN NOW TO BATTLE FOR THE £50k TOP PRIZE
Chelsea have already let go 13 senior players this summer, including the likes of Mason Mount, Kai Havertz, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Mateo Kovacic and N’Golo Kante.
Within the current travelling party, Conor Gallagher has been linked with a move away after West Ham recently had a £40m bid for the midfielder rejected.
Defender Levi Colwill spent last season on loan at Brighton, and is wanted back by the Seagulls who themselves have had a £30m bid rejected during this window,
Elsewhere, Romelu Lukaku, Hakim Ziyech and Callum Hudson-Odoi’s situations are yet to be resolved back at Cobham.
Pochettino is clearly beginning to get frustrated, firstly by the lack of incomings – with just four so far – and secondly by the state of his mismatch squad.
During this tour, he has already called out owner Todd Boehly to bring in more first team talent, including Brighton’s Moises Caicedo – despite his £100m evaluation.
Next up for Chelsea is a clash with London rivals Fulham in Washington on Sunday.
Poch continued: “It is clear if Chelsea make an offer for a player it’s because maybe there is some talking with agents or other clubs but I think this type of thing you cannot manage.
“Maybe some players for our team that are playing well and we are so pleased with, but they are thinking of leaving Chelsea for different circumstances.
“That is not a big issue, it happened in the past and will in the future also. Players that will be here next season need to be happy. Play or not play.
“If they believe they need to be in the starting XI and they are not going to accept being on the bench – Chelsea pay me to choose 11 players – it is better they to talk from now.”
Speaking as if he was one of the players, Poch added: “If I don’t play, I don’t want to be here – perfect.
“If I am here, I am committed, I am going to accept that you are the coach and are going to choose the players every single game.
“It is 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’.
“I am a player, I need to let the coaching staff work, if not it is impossible.”
TRANSFER NEWS LIVE: All the latest news, rumours and confirmed switches from the world of football