Pochettino already dropped major Chelsea team news hint for Bournemouth clash

Mauricio Pochettino's comments ahead of the international break suggest that seven players are already lined up to feature against Bournemouth on Sunday

Mauricio Pochettino has already dropped a huge team news hint ahead of Chelsea's clash against Bournemouth this weekend. The Cherries will welcome the Blues to the Vitality Stadium on Sunday afternoon as either side looks to return to winning ways after the international break.

"This type of game will help us to be more mature and learn the competition," said the 51-year-old. "It is not only to have quality after it's about to compete in a different way. To match their aggression to match energy, to match desire.

"Of course we were better, we cannot say that we didn't deserve but in football the stats sometimes reflect what you do but in that case we create but we didn't score, few shots on target and we should have more. That is about the process, all of the team.

"We were not lucky because I think we deserved more at West Ham and today but we didn't get a point but we need to keep going, be positive and it is a process that I said before, is a matter of time."

If Pochettino is looking for more maturity from his players then that suggests Thiago Silva, Raheem Sterling and Ben Chilwell will remain in the starting lineup. Equally, that could also suggest Marc Cucurella and Axel Disasi feature against Bournemouth too.

With the Chelsea boss also looking for more aggression and energy, that could point towards starts for Conor Gallagher and Noni Madueke. The duo have plenty of energy to burn and a point to prove.

After the Blues' defeat to Forest, Pochettino also admitted that his squad have suffered with anxiety at home games – Chelsea will of course lock horns with the Cherries