Just after Chelsea's 3-1 away defeat against West Ham, Pochettino expressed his sentiments, conveying a sense of disappointment while also acknowledging that this moment signifies merely the initial phases of their journey.
West Ham United secured a thrilling London derby victory against Chelsea, even with 10 men for nearly 30 minutes. Nayef Aguerd, who initially scored with a header, was red-carded in the 67th minute, leaving West Ham ahead 2-1.
Chelsea couldn't level the score despite their extra player, and midfielder Lucas Paqueta's last-minute penalty sealed a late third goal.
Carney Chukwuemeka's first goal for Chelsea tied the game 1-1, while Enzo Fernandez missed a penalty chance. Michail Antonio's strong strike in the 53rd minute regained West Ham's lead, but they were down to 10 men soon after.
Despite Aguerd's ejection, Chelsea failed to equalize again, despite Moises Caicedo's second-half debut. Although Caicedo had a chance to even the score, he shot over the bar and later conceded a penalty that Paqueta converted to secure West Ham's win.
“Teams like us, we need to get the right balance.”
Chelsea boss Pochettino told Sky Sports: "That's football. Teams like us, we need to get the right balance. I think today there were a few actions we didn't manage well and we concede. We create many chances and we did well in the first half. We should have won the game with our first half.
"In the second half with another isolated action, we concede again. To find the space to create clear chances [is difficult] but overall it is this type of game that is difficult to explain. You had the possession, you create and maybe you were the better side but in the end, you lose.
"It was the frustration when we miss the penalty. We were playing well and we didn't get the reward. We start the second half a little bit with this belief until we started again to play. Also, the injury to Carney Chukwuemeka changed a little bit the shape of the team. Then we start again to dominate the game but again we concede. We need to be more strong in this type of situation because we knew West Ham sit deep and counter-attack and set-pieces are really dangerous.
"Disappointed but this is only the beginning. We need to believe in the process. I think we are going to be stronger and for sure be really competitive."