What Pochettino is expected to do differently at Chelsea to solve issue Lampard was shocked by

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Mauricio Pochettino is expected to change his usual approach to pre-season to resolve one issue at Chelsea.

That is according to the Telegraph.

So, what is the problem for Mauricio Pochettino at Chelsea? Let’s take a look…

What’s the story?

Well, the Argentine arrives at Stamford Bridge with a relatively unfit squad on his hands.

The Telegraph believe Frank Lampard was shocked by the fitness levels of those he inherited from Graham Potter, and even had to deal with complaints from one player regarding extra running.

Pochettino would usually order his players to undergo the Gacon test – which was invented by Georges Gacon, a French fitness coach who worked at PSG before the Argentine signed for the French giants.

According to The Athletic, this involves getting the players to run for 45 seconds before having a 15 second rest.

The distance they cover then increases 6.3 metres each time from an initial 150 metres, with the aim being to improve endurance.

While Pochettino is expected to introduce that at some point, the Telegraph believe the Argentine and his assistant – Jesus Perez – will focus on strengthening the Chelsea players first, to avoid anyone having a fitness breakdown during the Gacon test.

Pochettino already impressing at Chelsea

In our view, this is impressive from the South American.

Many new managers would look to come into a club and immediately stamp their authority, ignoring what happened before their arrival and getting their ideas across regardless of the past.

However, Pochettino is being very considerate of the messy 2022/23 campaign – he is clearly keen to dissect what went wrong, and how he can put it right during pre-season.

The 51-year-old and Perez created a high intensity side during their time at Tottenham, and hopefully, they can instil a similar energy into Chelsea as the Blues attempt to bounce back in the 2023/24 campaign.