Mauricio Pochettino says his Chelsea side “gave up” in a 5-0 defeat by Arsenal At the Emirates Stadium.
After going 1-0 down at half-time, the Blues conceded 4 goals during a disastrous 18-minute spell in the second half as they suffered their heaviest London derby defeat since 1986.
Pochettino made three changes to his defense for the game, opting to rest Trevo Chalobah and Thiago Silva, while Malo Gusto was out injured during Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final defeat by Manchester City.
“It’s not difficult to explain,” said Pochettino. “Everybody saw that we didn’t compete from the start of the game.
“The team was very soft after we conceded. I’m very dissatisfied with the beginning.
“We weren’t aggressive and we didn’t focus on situations where it’s easy to find a solution. That’s why I’m so disappointed.”
Chelsea went into the match on the back of an eight-game unbeaten run in the Premier League and an outdoor probability of qualifying for Europe next season.
But Tuesday’s loss – their biggest of the season – leaves them ninth in the table.
“We were talking at half-time to start in a different way,” added Pochettino. “But we didn’t.” When we conceded the third goal, the team gave up. It was difficult for them.
“We played really well against Manchester City, it was a fantastic game. But then we didn’t compete three days later. Maybe we weren’t fresh.
“It isn’t fair to speak concerning the lot of players we’re missing. We have been missing a whole lot of players every week since the start of the season.
“The team showed a lack of ability to resist – that’s the problem.”
Credit : www.bbc.com
