Mauricio Pochettino: Raheem Sterling has an ‘important’ role to play at Chelsea
Mauricio Pochettino has said that Raheem Sterling will have an ‘important’ role to play in his Chelsea side going forward. The England international joined the Blues from Manchester City last summer but endured a difficult first season back in London, scoring just six times following the £50million move.
The 28-year-old is among those at Chelsea who will now get a clean slate following Pochetttino’s arrival at Stamford Bridge.
Sterling’s Struggles
Sterling’s drop-off in form last season resulted in him being dropped from the England squad with the forward revealing a change in diet took its toll on him.
‘In the season I changed a bit of my diet,’ Sterling explained. ‘I went to do something a little bit different I hadn’t done before and I had a few hamstring problems and probably towards the end of the season the hamstring was playing up again, and that was it; and me and the manager made a decision together to try and get the hamstring right.’
Pochettino’s Plans for Sterling
Pochettino however is confident that he can get the best out of Sterling and believes he can be an important player for Chelsea going forward.
‘I think he’s an important player for us. He’s in our plan,’ Pochettino said. ‘He can provide to the team many different things. We are confident we can get the best from him to help the team to achieve what we want.’
Selecting a New Captain
Also among the items in Pochettino’s in-tray is selecting a new club captain following the departure of Cesar Azpilicueta, who has joined Atletico Madrid.
Pochettino however was giving nothing away and says his new skipper will be revealed ahead of their opening game of the new season against Liverpool.
‘I’m not going to name until before the Liverpool game. I need to see the reaction, how they behave, how they react,’ he said.
‘It’s a time to assess everyone and see what is going on and to see who will be in the squad. It is not really important. For some people yes. Now it is important to assess and be right in the decision.’
Conclusion
Pochettino is confident that he can get the best out of Raheem Sterling and believes he can be an important player for Chelsea going forward. The Blues will also be selecting a new captain ahead of their opening game of the season against Liverpool, with Pochettino saying he will reveal his decision before then.