Mauricio Pochettino was appointed by Chelsea in July after they finished 12th in the Premier League last season – but the Argentine is yet to turn their fortunes around

Mauricio Pochettino has urged his Chelsea players to “pay more attention to ourselves” after their poor display against Newcastle.

The Blues were hammered 4-1 at St James’ Park last time out, with the visitors conceding two goals in two second-half minutes to hand Newcastle the initiative. Pochettino was furious with his players at full-time and described their capitulation as “soft”.

Chelsea’s defeat came after they won 4-1 at Tottenham and held champions Manchester City to an enthralling 4-4 draw at Stamford Bridge. Pochettino’s side, who are 10th in the Premier League, need to be more consistent if they are to climb the table.

The Argentine held showdown talks with his players after their loss at Newcastle and is hoping they can get back to winning ways when Brighton travel to Stamford Bridge on Sunday. Pochettino spoke to reporters on Friday to discuss his team’s form.

“It was a tough week for everyone,” said Pochettino. “I’m very happy because the players reacted really well. We blame ourselves because our approach (at Newcastle) maybe was wrong. But the week was good to realise what we need to improve.

“We need to be more consistent and mature. I’m very, very happy so far. It was tough in training and in meetings, but sometimes this type of situation helps you to improve a lot.

“The important thing is not to look at the end of the season, but to see the process and to improve every day. That’s the most difficult thing always in this type of process, to be focused on today and not on tomorrow.

“We beat Tottenham, had an amazing game against Manchester City, then we lose against Newcastle. We are our worst enemies and we need to be focused on us.

“If we are in a good place, I think for sure we will compete in a very good way. Brighton are not going to be the problem. We need to pay attention (to the opposition), but in this process I think we need to pay more attention to ourselves than to the opponent.”

Pochettino was furious with his players after their defeat at St James’ Park and will continue to make his feelings known throughout his time in charge. “The players know very well how my mood was,” he added. “I’m not going to act.

“I’m not going to show a face that I don’t feel. I think it’s important the players feel the coaches in a natural way when we are angry, when we’re happy we’re happy. We were tough in our analysis, but tough is about telling the truth.”