Speaking ahead of our FA Cup third round tie against Preston North End at Stamford Bridge late on Saturday afternoon, Mauricio Pochettino discussed the recent performances of two players who have impressed him.

Firstly it was young goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic, who has stepped in following the injury suffered by Robert Sanchez at Everton, keeping a clean sheet on his full Premier League debut in the win over Sheffield United and continuing to perform strongly. That has seen him nominated for the Premier League Save of the Month award for his brilliant stop to deny Carlton Morris late on at Luton Town in our last match.

Although it is still early days, with only four Premier League starts under the Serbian’s belt following his move from New England Revolution in the summer, Pochettino is delighted with the way the keeper has taken to life in the English top flight.

‘I think he’s been really impressive because to come from the MLS and perform the way he is performing, we are so happy, so pleased,’ said our head coach.

‘He’s a really nice person and a very good professional. He’s showing that he can cope with the pressure of playing for Chelsea because it’s never easy when you arrive from a different league and you are so young, to take the responsibility in the way that he did while performing and behaving.

‘The most important thing that sometimes people don’t recognise is how he behaves. He behaved the same on the first day he arrived as he does today after playing a few games in the Premier League and that is really important, to be consistent in his behaviour. That is why I am so pleased for him, because he deserves it.’

Pochettino also spoke about the performances of one of the defenders playing in front of Petrovic – Axel Disasi. The Frenchman has become an increasingly important member of the team since his own summer move from Monaco, starting all eight of our matches during December.

They included featuring at right-back on occasion in addition to his usual central position, during the absence of Reece James and Malo Gusto through injury, but Mauricio explained it was a role he knew Disasi could perform well in after seeing him do so to nullify one of the world’s most potent attacking threats in France.

‘He still has the potential to improve, we are waiting for more, but he’s doing well,’ he added. ‘It’s not easy to arrive in the Premier League and perform in a team that is in a process of building. The defensive players always struggle a little bit more than the offensive players in that situation.

‘We are happy with him because he can play centre-back but also can help the team at right-back because of injuries, like we’ve had with Reece and Malo. He’s a player we knew and it was a bit lucky, because maybe another coach and coaching staff wouldn’t have known that he can play right-back.

‘When we were at Paris Saint-Germain he played one game against us with Monaco when he was on the side of the defence, playing against Kylian Mbappe. We saw that he could perform as a right-back, but he’s a centre-back who I think can play on both sides.

‘We are so happy because his adaptation has been really good. He suffered a little bit in the beginning, which is normal, but he’s a player who has the potential to improve more.’