Palmer enjoyed an outstanding first season at Chelsea under the Argentine, who was forced out at the end of the campaign.
He said from England's Euros camp: "Yeah, I was because he put his trust in me and we built a good relationship. Not just with him but with all his staff who were there. When he left I was gutted.
"He just gave me the opportunity and the freedom and said ‘do what you do’.
Mauricio Pochettino helped Cole Palmer flourish at Chelsea
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"I spoke to some of the people who had worked with him, even players, and they said he loves working with young players so I thought that was perfect.
"He's probably the main reason (I'm here) because a different manager might not have given me that freedom and opportunity to do what I did at Chelsea.
“(The season) went a lot better than I expected.
“Obviously I believed what I could do anyway, but I didn't think I would go there and have that sort of impact that fast.”