Mauricio Pochettino says Chelsea owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali are “more than welcome” in the dressing room – but only if he agrees first.
Boehly told Chelsea players their season has been “embarrassing” after a 2-1 home defeat to Brighton in April, which did not go down well with the squad.
Boehly, Eghbali and other members of the board were very hands-on last season, attending training sessions and entering the dressing rooms at both Cobham and Stamford Bridge.
At his unveiling as Chelsea head coach, Pochettino gave further insight into his expectations and how he will work with the owners to foster a better culture at the club.
Pochettino said: “Of course for me, more than welcome if the owner comes to the dressing room, to the training ground, but like I said, always they need to communicate myself, I need to know and to prepare, you know, the people... because here it’s really special this type of thing in England.
“Maybe in other countries it’s different, but here it’s this way, the coach or the head coach or the manager have some influence in all the football club for the fans, for the players for the staff for everyone, and for the media also, and of course altogether we need to create this.
“We are there to guide, to guide all the people that are involved in this football club, to try to create the best performing, to try and work and perform in the best way.
“For me, I am more than happy if they are close to us. They are the owners but it is the coach, the head coach or the manager who decides [certain] things, how it’s going to work in the dressing room, in the pitch and in the training ground. Also with the sporting director, altogether, to create the line.”
The collaborative approach is likely to be appreciated by Chelsea’s owners, who appointed sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stuart last season.
Pochettino spoke of his “trust” of Winstanley and Stuart and praised them for doing a “very good” job.
His priority now is both buying and selling players in the transfer market as Chelsea attempt to bounce back from a disappointing season where they finished 12th.
Pochettino knows Chelsea have a reputation for hiring and firing managers but is ready to tackle that pressure head on.
He said: “I love the risk. I love, you know, to be on the top with the expectations to be here, and I think for me it’s a challenge.
“It’s a big challenge, that I want to feel, I want to feel again, the adrenaline, and you know to be there fighting for big things.
“I want to feel the adrenaline again, to be there and fighting for big things. This football club, because of its history, is about winning big trophies. I want to prove myself, that I can deal with that.”
