Pochettino 'so happy' as Chelsea thrash West Ham

Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino hailed his players after today's 5-0 rout of West Ham.

Cole Palmer, Conor Gallagher, Noni Madueke and Nicolas Jackson (2) struck the goals.

Pochettino said: "I'm so happy for the players and staff.

"After the victory against Tottenham and to come back again after a few days is very good.

"It was a brilliant game, it was amazing. They reacted in the right way. I was so happy how we competed on Thursday and we have talented players to create chances and score goals.

"I wasn't relaxed in the dugout, I wanted to keep a clean sheet. West Ham are a powerful team on set-pieces and we needed some luck. It was important not just to win the game but also get the clean sheet.

"It's amazing to have the kids from the academy but if we want to be competitive we need to have the squad fit. It's important that we are competitive in all areas with players who can fight for their place.

"It's true last season was tough for everyone here and to turn the feelings and performance this season is difficult. We needed time for everyone to trust in the process and we have recovered good feelings at Stamford Bridge."

On fighting for a place in Europe, he added: "We need to keep this momentum and belief going. We are going to rest tomorrow and Tuesday we will prepare for Nottingham Forest. It's step by step but most important is the mentality."