Mauricio Pochettino used his formal unveiling as Chelsea manager to warn that the club must move on quickly from their disastrous campaign last season as there is “no patience” in football.
The first 12 months of ownership for Todd Boehly’s Clearlake capital consortium saw the team record its lowest Premier League finish in 29 years and score fewer league goals than in any season since 1924.
The former Spurs boss, whose appointment was confirmed over a month ago, officially began work at Cobham on Monday and faces the daunting task of picking up the pieces from a season that saw two managers dismissed and more than £600million spent assembling a bloated, unbalanced squad.
Work has begun on slimming down the playing staff and shrinking the wage bill with Mason Mount and N’Golo Kante among nine first-team players to have left since the transfer window re-opened.
Pochettino promised more movement in the transfer market and said he would take a more hands-on role in recruitment now that he has formally started work, though co-sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Lawrence Stewart will continue to lead the process.
Chelsea begin life competitively under their new manager against Liverpool at Stamford Bridge on August 13, and the Argentinian said he and his players should not expect to be afforded a transitional period in which to heal from their last campaign.
“Every single season, not only the players but also the staff and the people and the fans have the capacity to move on quick,” said Pochettino. “In football, you need to move on quick. If not, you are dead.
“Of course what I found from day one – and it’s true that the squad is not the whole squad yet – but the players were very open, the attitude is amazing. Of course we have the quality and we are going to add more quality. I’m so excited to be here, and of course I don’t think about what happened in the past.
“The past is not too far away, but I think when you finish the season you have to move on and try to think of the future.”
Co-controlling owner Boehly has so far shown himself to be as ready to dismiss managers as his predecessor Roman Abramovich, with Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter already removed having each worked for only a few months under the American.
Pochettino was given five-and-a-half years to work at his last Premier League appointment, Tottenham, and in that time had a transformational effect on the club, carrying them from a sixth-place finish in 2014 to become title challengers two seasons later and Champions League finalists in 2019.
He was asked whether he expected to be given a similar window at Stamford Bridge in which to rebuild following the failures of last season.
“In football, (there is) no patience,” he said. “It’s difficult to wait. At Chelsea, it is not about asking for time. You need to deliver from day one.
“That is why we are working now in the training ground. It’s not to waste time. It’s to deliver from now, to give our best, to put in the service of the team. Football is about today or yesterday, you can’t talk too much long term.
“You can’t say to the people ‘we need six months to create something’. That’s not good. We need to create the belief from the beginning. I think we’re going to have a squad that can deliver in the short term and give what we expect.
“From day one we need to be thinking about winning. If we don’t win, little by little we need more time to develop our ideas.
“We need to be ready in the first game of the Premier League to beat Liverpool.”
He added that an understanding had been struck from as early the first conversations with the hierarchy about what would be expected of him in the role.
“The first conversation was with Paul and Lawrence, by Zoom. I said ‘I need to know if I need to convince you or you need to convince me’.
“They were very honest with me. They showed the plan. All the good and not so good things that need to happen before July 1, and after. I listened then.
“Then I spoke with the owners in a really good way. They are clever people, football is about being clever and learning from the past and experience. I feel good.
“I’m not a coach that needs to ask for power. I don’t ask in my contract for a clause that I need to do this or that. I need to show to (the owners) and the players and fans that they can trust me and my decisions.”
'I don't celebrate goals any more' - Postecoglou bemoans VAR after Arsenal defeat
Ange Postecoglou admitted "I don't celebrate goals any more" after VAR denied Tottenham during their north London derby defeat by Arsenal.
Spurs were beaten 3-2 by their rivals, who kept their Premier League title challenge on track, despite a late rally having trailed 3-0 at half-time at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Trailing 1-0 to Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg's own-goal, the hosts thought they had equalised when Micky van de Ven slotted past David Raya, However, the decision to award the goal was overturned following a VAR review with the defender adjudged to be offside.
Arsenal took advantage of their let-off with Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz increasing their lead, while second-half strikes from Cristiano Romero and Heung-Min Son proved academic for Tottenham.
"Games aren’t refereed in the stadium any more," Postecoglou told reporters during his post-match press conference. "I don’t celebrate goals any more.
"You've got to wait for somebody down the road. It’s a shame, I don’t like it, but I’ve got to accept it."
The Spurs boss was pleased with his side's response after the break, and hopes his players will benefit from the disappointment of losing the derby.
"It's a big day for our club and our fans, and we didn't get the outcome we wanted, so it's obviously very disappointing," he added on SpursTalk.
"You can go out in the second half and accept your fate that it's not your day, but we had to show some resilience and fight - just for our supporters more than anything else. To be fair to the lads, they did that.
"We just lacked some focus today in key moments, particularly in the first half. Sometimes, you've got to feel the pain of it to learn that lesson properly."
Arteta was 'praying' Arsenal held on for derby victory
Mikel Arteta was "praying" Arsenal clung on as the Gunners held off a late Tottenham fightback to claim a 3-2 north London derby victory on Sunday.
Arsenal looked to be cruising at 3-0 up after a Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg own-goal put the Gunners ahead at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, before Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz extended the visitors' lead.
However, a David Raya mistake allowed Cristian Romero to cut the deficit before a Son Heung-min penalty threw Arsenal's lead into further peril after Declan Rice brought down Ben Davies.
The Gunners held on, though, despite some late pressure, a period in which Arteta conceded he was fearing the worst.
"I was praying," Arteta told reporters. "It was a really emotional game.
"3-0 up you're in control, and then an individual error happens that clicks something. We started to deal with the situation better, but they have the players to put a lot of courage forward."
Along with the derby day spoils, the win extends Arsenal's lead at the Premier League summit to four points, temporarily at least with closest rivals Manchester City taking on Nottingham Forest later on Sunday in the first of their two games in hand over the Gunners.
The destination of the title remains in the hands of Pep Guardiola's City, who overtook Arsenal last term to claim a fifth Premier League title in six seasons last term after the Gunners led for much of the way.
Arteta believes Arsenal are better-equipped this time to go on and win the title, however.
When asked if Arsenal have the ability to go all the way, Arteta replied: "100%.
"I’ve seen that the whole season. They give me reason to believe that every single day. The motivation for what is ahead is beautiful."
'We fought until the end' - Saka 'delighted' as Arsenal withstand late Spurs surge
Bukayo Saka saluted Arsenal's fighting spirit as they withstood a late Tottenham revival to claim all three points in the north London derby.
Mikel Arteta's side prevailed 3-2 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to extend their lead at the Premier League summit to four points over second-place Manchester City with three matches remaining, though the Citizens still have two games in hand.
The Gunners surged into a 3-0 lead before half-time with Saka and Kai Havertz on target after Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg's own-goal broke the deadlock.
The winger's 15th goal of the season - his highest tally during a single term - saw him become the first English player to score home and away for Arsenal against Tottenham in the same Premier League campaign since Ian Wright in 1993-94.
However, the visitors given a late scare with Cristian Romero pouncing on David Raya's error to pull a goal back, before Heung-Min Son's 87th-minute penalty set up a grandstand finish.
Nevertheless, they held on for three points and, though the destiny of the title is out of their hands, their challenge remains very much alive.
"The last 20 minutes weren't nice, but it was worth it," Saka told Sky Sports.
"We know it's a big derby, and they don't want to lose 3-0 at home. Once they got one goal, the crowd were up and the momentum shifted their way. But I'm proud of the boys. We fought until the end, and got the three points.
"We showed our level heads at the end, and I'm proud to get the win. We know what it means to the fans and to us, so we're delighted.
"This is a massive win for us. We've got three [matches] to go, we're going to give it everything. City are an amazing team, but they're not perfect - nobody's perfect, they can drop points. We just need to do our job and see where it leads us."
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