Chelsea given £81m transfer ultimatum as Mauricio Pochettino sends Todd Boehly clear message

Mauricio Pochettino has heaped praise on Conor Gallagher and Trevoh Chalobah. The duo have been heavily linked with departures from Stamford Bridge recently despite their impressive performances for the Blues this season.

In fact, Gallagher and Chalobah combined on Thursday evening to give Chelsea the lead over Tottenham Hotspur. Nicolas Jackson later doubled the west London outfit's advantage, heading the ball into an empty net.

The Cobham graduates, who are currently valued at a combined £81.2million, played a crucial role in Chelsea's 2-0 win over Ange Postecoglou's side. Speaking to reporters after the game, Pochettino was eager to acknowledge their efforts.

When quizzed on Gallagher and Chalobah, the Blues boss said: "They were fantastic, of course. Always we talk about the identity of the clubs, players that grow in the club, came through the academy system.

"They have the capacity in this type of game to give a little bit more because it's emotional. But that doesn't mean the players that arrive away from the academy do not feel the same.

"You can see Thiago [Silva] how he feels, how emotional he is, how you can build this bond with your team. But in this case, they were fantastic. The whole team were fantastic, but Trevoh and Conor were amazing."

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Then, when questioned on Gallagher's role in the side, Pochettino said: "You can see. My starting eleven, the whole season he has always been there, in all of the circumstances he is always there. I am not involved in the decision. It is a situation they need to fix between the club and the player."

Pochettino will be hoping the duo can help Chelsea extend their unbeaten streak this weekend. The Blues will lock horns with West Ham at Stamford Bridge on Sunday afternoon as either side hopes to climb the Premier League table.

"These are the most dangerous games because now we have to keep the same mentality," said the former Spurs boss. "West Ham are a strong team, with great physicality, and they have had a fantastic season.

"They have been competing well in Europe and for us, we need to recover and maybe add some fresh legs to our squad because West Ham have had a whole week to prepare - that is why these are the most dangerous games."