Chelsea: Mauricio Pochettino delivers Levi Colwill update amid key warning for underperforming trio
Colwill, along with team-mate Noni Madueke, is expected to travel with the Blues squad for their US trip next week after forming a key part of the England side that won the European Under-21 Championship in Georgia on Saturday with a tense 1-0 win over Spain.
The highly-rated centre-back gave away a last-gasp penalty in the final that was dramatically saved by Burnley-bound Manchester City goalkeeper James Trafford, but otherwise was an influential figure at the heart of a defence that did not concede a single goal throughout the tournament.
After the win in Batumi, Madueke told Chelsea fans that he would “make sure” Colwill returns with him to Stamford Bridge this summer, with question marks still surrounding his future with Brighton wanting to complete a permanent transfer for the 20-year-old after his impressive season-long loan spell on the south coast in 2022/23. Liverpool are among the other clubs to be linked with his signature.
New Blues boss Pochettino confirmed in his first press conference at Stamford Bridge on Friday that both Colwill and Madueke would join Chelsea for a tour of the US that will include friendlies against Brighton, Newcastle, Fulham and Borussia Dortmund.
The duo are also set to sit down for talks over Colwill’s future upon his return to the club.
No excuses: Mauricio Pochettino will work closely with Chelsea’s underperforming stars
/ Chelsea FC via Getty Images“First of all, I need to understand him,” Pochettino said. “I need to hear what he has in his mind. What he expects. And then, of course, for him to listen to what I expect from him.”
Pochettino also confirmed plans to sit down and speak with Mudryk, who has also been on duty at the U21 Euros with Ukraine.
The winger struggled notably for form in the aftermath of his dramatic £88.5million switch from Shakhtar Donetsk in January, though his new boss is eager to help him reach the required level as he also plans an individual training regime.
“It is to understand the circumstances how he also arrived,” Pochettino said of Mudryk. “I think it’s not the same mindset and everything is different in the life of Mudryk than Enzo [Fernandez]. That is why for us it is really important to spend time to talk.
“We were talking with Mudryk, I’m going to meet him before he comes to start pre-season, because he was in the Under-21 Euros and will join us when we fly to America. I really like to see and to know him to try to decide with the staff the best strategy to help him to be at the level that I think Chelsea when they signed him expected him to be.”
Pochettino was also quizzed on compatriot Fernandez and Raheem Sterling as part of his plans for individually-tailored training sessions this summer, insisting the former needed to rest after a whirlwhind season that included a starring role in Argentina’s World Cup win in Qatar and a subsequent British record £106.8m transfer from Benfica.
With Fernandez having also not hit the heights expected of him so far in west London, Pochettino said: “He arrived at Chelsea not in the best circumstances for a player that won the World Cup. It’s always difficult because he’s still young and of course he needs to learn about the Premier League. The Premier League is a really tough competition and he changes everything – culture, language, everything – and it is always difficult to adapt.
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“But I think now he knows what it means to be a Chelsea player and knows the city, London, and here he is improving to communicate better and I think we are going to help this aspect for him to give the team his best.”
Sterling is another not to have shown his best yet at Chelsea, having joined from Manchester City in a transfer worth £47.5m last summer.
He has even been linked with an early Blues exit in some quarters, though Pochettino said he understands his struggle to adapt that could not be blamed solely on the player.
However, he also warned that nobody at Chelsea would have excuses for not performing in future after working under his individual training regimes.
“First of all we need to see us and see what is going on and why they are not performing in the way that we expect and then, of course, when all is clear, we cannot give excuses to them to not perform. We need to clear everything and say: ‘come on, now it is up to you, show me you are ready to play for this football club’,” he said.
“But it’s true that the circumstances didn’t help all these types of players that arrived from different clubs with different expectations. Some because they were so good and scored so many goals and performed really well and others because they were young or really talented. It’s important to understand that we need to take the responsibility before we blame them.”
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