Mauricio Pochettino admitted he and his Chelsea players are ‘all not good enough’ at present after losing 4-2 at home to Wolves.
Chelsea’s difficult season reached a new low as the West Londoners squandered an early lead to lose to Wolves at Stamford Bridge.
Having suffered a heavy loss at Liverpool in midweek, Pochettino’s team fell to back-to-back defeats after another disappointing performance. Cole Palmer’s 10th goal of the Premier League season had put Chelsea ahead, but Wolves levelled moments later through Matheus Cunha’s deflected strike after Moises Caicedo had conceded possession.
Wolves went ahead before half-time after Axel Disasi put through his own goal and Cunha’s second of the game, just after the hour, put Wolves ahead. The Brazilian completed a hat-trick from the penalty spot, with Thiago Silva’s goal little consolation for Chelsea.
“We didn’t start badly, the game. The way we conceded the first goal; the team suffered,” Pochettino said at his post-match press conference.
“We tried to build the momentum and trust with the way we play. A difficult moment to manage after that. The energy dropped and then it was really difficult moment to manage. We concede the second goal, two own goals in the first-half.
“We feel the pressure and the stress to win, to play well, to perform, and yes, we didn’t have time to build the momentum in the game, to play easy and feel confident. In the way we conceded the two goals, you can’t afford to concede these goals. That was the feeling after Liverpool that it was affecting the team too much.”
Chelsea were booed from the pitch with the defeat leaving the Blues 11th in the Premier League table and with a negative goal difference. Pochettino was candid in his assessment of the team’s performance this season.
“I think we are all not good enough. At the moment this is the reality. Myself, also. What we are showing today is we are not good enough. We didn’t manage the situation properly. No-one can be safe, no? I don’t want to come here and say I’m the best. At the moment, we are not matching the history of the club, that is true. We need to accept and be critical. We will not give up.
“The perception is Chelsea should be in a different position but for different circumstances, we are not. One is maybe because we’re not good enough.
“To understand the fans is really important. I feel sorry. We are disappointed like them but until the end we need to fight together. During the game we need to work together to get a good result.”
On if the boos impact him, Pochettino added: “I am a human. Of course it’s not nice situation. In football, you have to accept. With a club like Chelsea, with the expectation, you need to accept that. To be in this business, with this type of club, you need to be strong.”
