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Sterling was involved in all four goals as Chelsea beat Burnley 4-1 at Turf Moor, continuing their improving form as they have now won three games on the spin.
The former Manchester City and Liverpool forward scored once but also caused havoc in the Clarets’ defence as he created chances for his teammates.
Asked about Sterling’s impressive display, Pochettino said: ‘It’s his job, no? To play well. All players try to play well and today he was well.’
The Argentine was genuinely delighted with Sterling and his team as a whole, adding: ‘He was involved in the goals and I am so happy for him and so happy for the team.
‘The team was good, the performance was fantastic, they deserve the praise. So happy for them and go to the international break with a different feeling to the last.’
The 28-year-old has won 82 caps for his country, but is not in the current England squad and Pochettino has encouraged Sterling to show Gareth Southgate what he is missing.
‘I think he deserves and he is a player that knows he needs to perform and show the manager of the national team that he was wrong in his decision,’ he said. ‘Only with performance and scoring goals is he going to show that he deserves to go, nothing in between.
‘When you are not involved with the squad like he was out, it’s about to show that you deserve. With performance is the only way to show that.’
Sterling was more focussed on the team’s performance than whether he is out there trying to win back the trust of Southgate.
‘I wouldn’t say I had something to prove,’ he said. ‘We started well and conceded but then we kept playing and kept building. We took our chances and it was a good performance in the end.
‘We were disappointed to go behind but it just shows that we are not giving up and we are building a foundation and making these steps week in, week out.’
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