Our new manager has long been known for the work ethic he instils, and demands, from his players on the pitch and in training, but has been explaining that he is no stranger to hard graft himself, believing he needs to lead by example when it comes to the tough job of competing in the Premier League.

Discussing our preparations for tomorrow’s opening Premier League match with Liverpool at Stamford Bridge, Mauricio Pochettino felt it was important to underline the amount of work that has been going into getting the team ready and giving them the best chance of success, and it seems clear he knows no other way to work.

‘We are busy, to train and to decide the strategy for Sunday and we are busy also with all the staff to try to create the best environment for the players to feel good,’ he confirmed.

‘But that is why I want to tell you we arrive at 6.20am or 6.30am at the training ground and we are leaving at 8pm or 9pm. We spend maybe 14 or 15 hours there and sometimes it’s like at the end of the day we still need to talk about this.

‘But that is because we are doing things well. When that happens you always need time, even when you work more than 12 hours, and that I think is a good signal for everybody at the club. It is difficult for the fans to see this step forward that we are moving, but I think we are really important to set up the principle.’

He feels that has been doubly important while preparing for this upcoming season, as our head coach, himself a recent arrival in west London, gels a new-look squad together with the aim of taking the club back where it belongs, following a difficult campaign in 2022/23.

That task was underlined when it was suggested to Pochettino that from the outside events at Chelsea recently have looked ‘chaotic’, an assertion the Argentinian insists is incorrect and a view he is eager to put right.

‘If that is the impression on social media, of the fans or of people outside of Chelsea, then we need to change that impression,’ he continued. ‘My impression of Chelsea from the outside was a club with the capacity to win.

‘In the last few years it may have been Manchester City, Liverpool and Arsenal around the top, but over the last 15 years it is Manchester United and Chelsea that you talk about winning the Premier League and Champions League. That is what was my vision of Chelsea from outside.

'But of course sometimes what happened happens and it has been a difficult situation for the people here, for the fans, for the players. It is a big change, people need time to settle here in a big club like this, it’s Chelsea.

‘For me now it’s about the work also, to create different conditions for the people to trust in the club again and to try to play good football for the fans again, because we are selling entertainment and of course they come here to see a show from the team, and get results.’

Another view from outside the club which Pochettino was quick to refute was suggestions the relative lack of Premier League experience within this Chelsea squad could hinder our efforts for the coming season. However, while the Blues boss doesn’t deny its benefits, in his opinion it will always be secondary in importance to the need for players to possess the hunger and drive to succeed, regardless of age or experience.

‘Only results will say if we are weaker or stronger than we were last season, but I am happy. We have players with experience of playing in the Premier League. We have some young guys, but with quality and they can perform. They have hunger to show their quality.

‘Sometimes you have experienced players but without the desire to win. You cannot win only with these players. If you have good experienced players with the desire to win and showing hunger, okay, give me this type of player. But if not, no.

‘I prefer the players who decide to play, to run, to fight for the club, for their team-mates, rather than have experience but maybe think it’s better to move. But I am happy to help the team and to help the club to create something that we can put again in a position that we all believe that we can be.’

With the 2023/24 Premier League already under way and just one day to go until Chelsea’s first match of the season, there isn’t long left until we will get to see the results of all that hard work and desire in action on the Stamford Bridge pitch.