Axel Disasi
Speaking to L’Équipe, Axel Disasi revealed that Mauricio Pochettino played a central role in bringing him to Chelsea this summer.
Disasi enjoyed a breakthrough at Monaco last season, making Didier Deschamps’ World Cup squad and even playing a prominent role in the tournament in Qatar. However, Pochettino’s interest in Disasi pre-dates this breakthrough. “He said that he has known me since [my days at] Stade de Reims,” Disasi told L’Équipe.
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However, the France international did reveal that last year’s performances for the Principality club played a role in earning his €45m move to Stamford Bridge in the summer. “When we started to speak, he spoke to me about the match at the Parc des Princes, about how we had won and that I had played as a right-back against Kylian Mbappé […] Pochettino followed my season and wanted me to join Chelsea,” said the former Reims centre-back.
He added, “I felt that he was really interested, that he knew me really well. Things accelerated after the call with Pochettino and the sporting director. They really tried to bring me here.”
Disasi also revealed that Laurence Stewart also played an important role. Stewart was the technical director at Monaco until January before making the move to Chelsea. The pair therefore have a prior relationship and Lawrence’s relationship with Paul Mitchell, the now-former Monaco sporting director also reassured Disasi that he was making the correct decision.
“As I knew the sporting director, it reassured me. The fact that I know he gets on with Paul Mitchell also helped. I asked Paul questions about the project at Chelsea. He was also great with me,” said the Frenchman. Since arriving at the Premier League club, Disasi has made 13 appearances in all competitions.
