Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino has insisted the Blues must win now despite building a squad for the future.
Pochettino said: “We need to work and still be improving in the next few years. We need to win every week. What is missing is to have all the players fit and for that we are going to work.
“I am so happy because I think the project that they showed me, the club is working really hard to transform to a different way of operating.
“We need to be careful because we have an amazing project here, a young squad, young talented players but now we need to find a way to perform. We are spending but we are building something for the future also, not just for the present.
“We need to win because football is about winning. We are investing for the present and for the future. We need to work really hard but at the same time we need to win now.”
Pochettino believes success in the short term will be essential for his own chance of being part of the project’s long-term fruition.
Pochettino added: “My success is going to be if we win today, not tomorrow, in one year or two years. I’m not going to use the excuse that we need to build something for the future. I don’t want to give excuses to the players or the fans, I want to win.
“If we don’t win I know what is going to happen. That is the reality. You can sign the players, then you need to create the environment and create the dynamic that is going to get you close to winning.
“It’s about the plan. The problem is we invest today but maybe we will be rewarded in a few years. I need to be sure that I am here! All the sacrifice and effort today, I want to be here when the good things happen for the club.
“The talented players that we have is amazing, it’s only a matter of time before they start to perform and when they are doing their best for sure we will have an amazing team. Now it’s tough and now it’s difficult, we are working really hard, but it’s exciting also.
“We are so happy to be involved in the start of this project. It’s the start of a new era here working in a different way. We need to not be confused about that. We are spending money but it’s not a guarantee to get results so quick. It’s always a process.”