Our head coach made no secret of his disappointment in the performance of our players in the 2-2 draw with Burnley in our last Premier League match on Saturday.

Having had time to speak to the squad at the training ground since that match, Mauricio Pochettino has revealed what he has been telling the players and why we need to step things up when we host Manchester United tomorrow evening.

He made it clear he believes they fell short of the standards he expects against Burnley and, while it is a young team, his patience cannot be infinite, with responsibility on the players to show they deserve their place at Stamford Bridge.

‘We were talking a lot during these few days since the game,’ he explained. ‘We are Chelsea but we need to behave like Chelsea. If we want to belong to a big club it’s not an excuse to be a young or inexperienced player. At the end of the day we need to perform.

‘We talk about young players’ potential to be amazing players, but they need to realise that they need to improve so quick. There’s no time to improve in one or two years, because the level is so high, in the Premier League and at this club.

‘It was a good few days to talk about body language, energy, the capacity to live with the pressure, to perform better and step up. We can find excuses but in the end we need to perform tomorrow and it is going to be the same guys on the pitch because that is the squad that we have.

‘They are the principle actors who need to step up and say: “we are here, we have character, we are going to show that we deserve to play in this amazing club”.’

For Pochettino, it is our actions off the ball which are his primary concern during this period. He wants to see his team equally capable when playing creative football or doing the gritty hard work needed to succeed at the top of the sport.

‘If we want to win and match the expectations in Chelsea we need to behave different. To be focused, concentrated and more aggressive. Not to hide behind the opponent, to always ask for the ball, to play in possession.

‘We created many chances to score but after that we need to be strong. If the team wants to win games it’s not only about playing well with the ball. We cannot be an exhibition team that plays football to enjoy it. We need to compete and competing is completely different.

‘That is why I was disappointed after the Burnley game. With the ball we tried, we played, we created chances. But after we need to run and chase, because otherwise you can’t win anything. If we want to win we need to respect both phases of the game.’

With that in mind, it is no surprise that improving our defensive record has been a particular focus for Pochettino and his team at Cobham this week. The Blues have conceded twice in each of our last five matches and are without a clean sheet since the goalless FA Cup tie with Aston Villa at the Bridge in January, a record he knows must improve quickly.

‘Today and yesterday we were working a lot in trying to provide the tools to the team to be strong and not concede goals in the way sometimes that we concede. That is the only way that I know to improve it. We were talking and showing videos with different players involved in the situation.

‘But always it’s about finding the right balance and until we get this balance we need to pay more attention in every situation to try to avoid problems. We are creating many chances but in the second part of the season we are conceding more.

‘Tomorrow against Manchester United we need to play better. We need to show more energy, show that we can compete more like a team.’