Mauricio Pochettino likens Marc Cucurella role change to building a chair

Mauricio Pochettino says his latest tactical tweak involving Marc Cucurella is evidence that his cries for time to teach his methods and «build the chair» have been justified.

Left-back Cucurella, who has been heavily linked with a summer sale after struggling at Stamford Bridge, has become the posterboy for Chelsea's recent resurgence after being deployed in an inverted role which has seen him step into the Blues' midfield during their last three games.

After impressing in a 2-2 draw with Aston Villa, Chelsea beat Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 before a 5-0 thumping of West Ham United left many fans questioning why it took Pochettino so long to return to a tactic he had tested in pre-season.

«This role we can implement in the future but before that it is because you need to build the belief, the confidence, the trust, the team needs to compete,» Pochettino explained. «The tactical evolution that we, the coaching staff, have in our heads – yes, we will apply in the future but the most important thing, you cannot sit if you don't have a chair. You need to build the chair.

»The problem in football is if you don't have a team, you're expected to behave like a team. You are so selfish and after you need to share. The priorities in football, like an engineer who is going to build a building. You want to see quickly the nice furniture, you want to live there. That is why sometimes we make a mistake when we judge the job of the people, the coaching staff and young players."

Pochettino went on to admit that everything now seems to be clicking for Chelsea, whose young players have faced an uphill battle to meet expectations in tough conditions.

"[Anyone] who knows about football, they know the process to build a team is the most difficult