Last season is a long time ago - Mauricio Pochettino is looking forward to Chelsea

Mauricio Pochettino has insisted Chelsea have put last season's disappointment behind them after seeing his new side open their Premier League campaign with a 1-1 draw against Liverpool at Stamford Bridge.

>

The hosts suffered a difficult start against Jurgen Klopp's side and deservedly fell behind a breakaway goal from Luis Diaz after 18 minutes, guided into the bottom corner by Mohamed Salah's fine pass .

They were saved from going further behind when VAR intervened to rule out Salah's strike for offside as Liverpool dominated for much of the first half.

But Chelsea slowly fell back and were level when defender Axel Disasi, making his first start, snuck past Ben Chilwell's header home eight minutes before the break.

VAR were again called upon to disallow Chilwell's goal two minutes later, but subsequently Pochettino's side set in and posed a ready threat to Liverpool's back line, with the striker starting Nicolas Jackson fending off the best chance when he shot over the bar from six yards out.

The manager reflected on a performance in which he felt his side showed the traumas of last season, when the club failed to fight for silverware and finished a dismal 12th, were exorcised.

“I agreed from the start, it was hard, it was difficult,” he said. "Liverpool were better after 15-20 minutes but we started to find our ways of playing, our position and what we were working on. And after that the performance was really good.

"We scored and afterwards we showed a great performance. I think we deserved to win, we only conceded one shot on target against a team like Liverpool.

"(I'm) so happy. This is just the beginning, the beginning. I can say thank you to the players.

"When we arrived here on the first day, we're not talking about the past, it was a long time ago. You have to move on, even if you think back to what happened seconds before, it passes.

"The most important action in football is the next one and that's what we want to settle. We want to talk about the present and the future. We have shown that we are convinced and the team continues to fight.”

With the sides still locked in a battle to sign Brighton midfielder Moises Caicedo, the need for more steel and control was evident in both midfielders as attack won out defense and the midfield looked porous for much of the game. .

Chelsea remain in pole position to win the race for their signature, with the Ecuador international believed to favor a move to west London over Klopp's side.

Pochettino would not be keen on advancing any deal but confirmed the club are still looking to strengthen in midfield before the end of the transfer window.

He was also keen to highlight his team's success in limiting the visitors to one shot on target during the match.

"Today we only concede one shot on target and we concede one goal, against Liverpool," he said. "We need good players and to improve the team, yes, but it's nothing new and we are working very hard.

"It's (trying) to find the right profile, the right player, but the team was solid. We only concede one shot on target against Liverpool but for sure we have to to create more chances, to have the ability to score more goals. I think that's the first step."

The manager has hinted that the decision to leave goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga out of the squad, with Robert Sanchez selected on his Chelsea debut, was due to reported interest from Real Madrid.

“The reason why he has to explore different situations, different possibilities,” he said. "Yesterday we were talking and the decision is to have all the players who have committed to be at Chelsea for the season."

Klopp said he had no problem with Salah's reaction when he was taken off in the second half.

The striker, who has scored in his first game of the season every year of his career at Anfield and hit the crossbar at Stamford Bridge, was visibly unhappy to be taken off as his side searched for a winner , but the manager said he felt it was a natural response.

"I can understand because if Mo scored it would have been a new goalscoring record in the opening game, but I didn't think about that," he said.

"We needed stability and we needed fresh legs. It was super intense for everyone. That's all I can say. His reaction was totally OK."