Chelsea have dropped fifteen points from winning positions this season, most recently against rock-bottom Sheffield United, being pegged back after going in front twice.
After the game, Mauricio Pochettino opened up about the “silent” dressing room admitting that his side “lack continuity after getting a result.”
However, ahead of hosting Everton on Monday evening, the Chelsea boss conceded that he should be less harsh on his squad after games.
“I think I need to be more cautious about my words after the game. It is a fact we have a young squad, but also I need to put out a different message.”
“We need to accept the reality and be positive with the players we have. If something happens, we need to take the positives.”
The Argentine coach further elaborated on the message he is sharing with his Chelsea side who sit ninth in the Premier League, six points adrift of sixth place.
“The message is to try and improve. We are working very hard to do so. We need to accept that is the reality.
“I need to be more positive because we have a really good squad – that is the reality.”
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Team news
Looking ahead to Monday’s game, Pochettino provided an update on the fitness of his squad.
Ben Chilwell has made just nine league appearances this season with a hamstring injury and a recent knee problem having kept him sidelined for the majority of the season. But, Pochettino shared good news on the left-back’s fitness with the defender returning to training.
“Chilly is training, partial training and seeing if he can be involved in the squad on Monday. It's good news. But he hasn't played too much this season.”
The Chelsea boss went on to acknowledge that they have “missed the competition” that Chilwell and other absentees would have provided this campaign.
New injury concerns for the Blues include Axel Diasi and Enzo Fernandez who haven’t trained since last week's draw at Bramall Lane.
“They are under assessment. They have different types of issues. We don't believe they are big issues but we will see if they can be available. At the moment, they have not trained after Sheffield and that is why we don't know.”
Another name on Chelsea’s ever-growing injury list is Lesley Ugochukwu who hasn’t featured since December. Pochettino finally provided an update on the midfielder.
“He is doing his recovery. We will see in a few weeks if he can be part of the training session.”
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Madueke’s minutes
Noni Madueke has only made five starts for the Blues this campaign, one of those coming last weekend against Sheffield United with the Englishman scoring a beautiful goal which put Chelsea 2-1 in front.
Pochettino addressed the attacker's lack of game time, admitting that the signing of Cole Palmer from Manchester City for £40 million has limited Madueke's minutes.
“First of all, it's about having the space for him because when the club signed Cole Palmer, he [Madueke] was also here at the club and they're in the same position.”
“It's all about adaptation and trying to find the dynamic where he and Palmer can play together. Hopefully, he can be consistent playing in the starting XI and show his quality. But it's always about finding the right balance in the team.”
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Chelsea's delicate defence
Chelsea have conceded at least two goals in each of their last seven matches. In a run of games that saw the Blues drop points to both Burnley and Sheffield United, the Premier League’s bottom two, it does not make good reading for Pochettino’s side.
There seems to be a sense of inevitability around Chelsea that whenever they score they will be pegged straight back. The fifteen points they have dropped from leading positions exemplify the lack of defensive quality in the side - something that has cost them dearly with the Blues being just four points outside of the European places. A more robust defence could have seen Chelsea in a more familiar position in the Premier League standings.
Pochettino, as he often does, explained that his side must find a balance between defence and attack sharing that his side had gone from one extreme to the other.
“In the same way we concede, we score. In the past, we struggled to score goals but now we are scoring. It's about getting the right balance between the two phases. That is the normal process and normal balance when the team is not mature enough, you can suffer in these types of situations.”
Keeping the positivity, Pochettino leaned on the fact his side stand unbeaten in their last seven Premier League games. Admitting that in the current situation, Chelsea find themselves in, he doesn’t mind if they concede so long as they find ways to win games.
“In the last seven or eight games, we didn't lose in the Premier League. The most important thing is to win games. Afterwards we want a clean sheet and not to concede, but at the moment it's about winning games, we want three points.
“I don't want to concede chances or goals, but it doesn't work like this. If we are only keeping clean sheets, maybe we need to play with 10 defensive players. But Chelsea, in my opinion, is about to go forward, to create chances and score goals.”
