Chelsea boss Liam Rosenior set up to counterattack and take at least a point from Manchester City’s visit to Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
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That fell apart in the second half, and the Blues boss now sees his team four points back of the UEFA Champions League places with a half-dozen matches left in their Premier League season.
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Chelsea could’ve taken an early lead through the counter attack but the game quickly became the Blues defending for their lives.
And they did it well until Rayan Cherki set up two City goals and put the Blues in a very precarious position. Rosenior was not happy with his team’s reaction to City’s first goal and says their mentality in those situations is an ongoing problem.
Liam Rosenior reaction — What did Chelsea manager say after match vs Man City?
Difference between first and second half? “Not good enough in the second half. We didn’t start the well. Had moments to clear the ball and didn’t. Had moments to move the ball and didn’t. It’s a similar story to the past month or so. When you go down a goal against a good team, you have to pick yourself up.”
“This is something that we have to improve. It starts on the training pitch, it starts with me. I can’t say it’s down to effort. There was a lack of confidence in the second half. We have to improve cause at the moment we’re in a difficult place and we have another huge game next week.”
On what went wrong; “We gotta remember we’re playing against a team pushing for the title. This club demands that. We need to wins game like this. That’s why I’ve come to the club. The first goal is difficult to stop. The second goal is an error on the edge of the box. The third is a mistake.”
“Cucurella’s offside, it’s not an excuse for the second half but that goal goes in we probably go up but we have to be more resilient to setbacks. We have to stay in the game. You’re playing a very good team.”
How much did Enzo Fernandez’s absence hurt? “Any team will miss Enzo Fernandez. Myself backed by the leadership we made a decision for the long-term for the club. It’s nothing personal with Enzo. He’ll be back in the group, a top, top player and a top guy. Enzo wanted to have conversations with the main players of the group. In my press conference he hadn’t done that yet. I didn’t want to say something and have to take that back.”
“It could be and we have to focus on that but we have to get the next bit right. How we come back from set backs and how we get the first goal.”