After the 2-0 win against “neighbor” Fulham, coach Mauricio Pochettino shared about his difficulties when trying to promote the Chelsea squad including many young players.
One of the young players Pochettino mentioned – £88.5m winger Mykhailo Mudryk – has taken a long time to get his first goal since joining Chelsea in January. Mudryk’s 22-year-old teammate, striker Armando Broja, marked his first appearance in the starting lineup since recovering from a serious knee injury, with a goal that doubled the gap, sealing a 2-1 victory. -0 overall.
The Blues’ goals were all scored in the first half, even just 82 seconds apart, helping Chelsea win their second consecutive victory after a disappointing start to the season. This is also the second victory after 7 rounds in the 2023/24 Premier League for Pochettino and his team, helping them temporarily rank 11th with 8 points.
When asked about Mudryk after the match, Pochettino praised: “It’s maturity, adaptation. We need to understand that young players need time to stabilize. Big changes have taken place and it’s not easy to deal with because to be honest, there are too many young players arriving in a context where the team’s framework is not very solid.””It’s not like adding a cherry to an already delicious cake. They need to give something extra to the team, some important boost. We need to believe in these boys , these talented young players. It’s something that takes time. Very slow, step by step. Sometimes people don’t have enough patience. But we are patient, even when we lose.”
“It is important to stay calm but at the same time find ways to continue to improve and believe. Let’s continue to build trust because we need confidence,” the 51-year-old coach encouraged his players. .
Chelsea faced some more injury concerns at Craven Cottage when Mudryk had to leave the field after 45 minutes of play, and Moise Caicedo was withdrawn late in the match.
Pochettino added: “He (Mudryk) felt something was wrong. Hope it’s not a big problem. He just didn’t feel comfortable continuing to play. Caicedo has a bruise but hopefully it’s okay.”