Xabi Alonso had the worst night of his life as Chelsea coach on Friday. The Blues literally sank on the Brentford pitch (3-0), after a second half where they completely fell through. Anthony (61st), Igor Thiago (83rd) and Carvalho (90th + 4) put to torture a defense which has been taking on water from all sides since the start of the season. The Spanish technician even became the 6th manager in the history of the Premier League to concede at least two goals in his first matches after Mick McCarthy, Sammy Lee, Terry Connor, Slavisa Jokanovic and Scott Parker.
“ We lost consistency throughout the match, in the competitive mentality, which was necessary in the second half “, lamented the former Real Madrid player at a press conference. His team is not yet ready to take on the entire match and is paying dearly for it. “ Small details are decisive. You shouldn’t give in these kinds of matches, because with nothing, they (Brentford) get a big advantage. A match lasts around 95 minutes and we haven’t been able to maintain that level in these first matches of the season. This is something we need to improve on. »
Worst defense in the Premier League
Despite a squad that is certainly a little unbalanced, but rich in numbers and quality, Chelsea are having all the trouble in the world to get going at the start of the season. “ It’s a process. We only played five games in a very competitive Premier League. We knew every match would be difficult. This is not new. We need time. » 7th in the championship, Chelsea have already conceded 12 goals (no one does worse) and remain in three games without a victory in the Premier League. Emiliano Martínez found the ball in the back of his net 10 times in his first four games. We even saw him get caught by Jordan Henderson.
The London club is very fragile on set pieces, concedes Levi Colwill, captain last night and aligned in a three-way defense with Lacroix and Fofana. “ We have confidence in our set-piece coach. We are still adapting to new things but we need to progress as a team “, he affirmed. It’s literally the whole thing that’s taking on water. Since the start of the season, Chelsea have posted terrible statistics in this area, being the 18th team to concede shots from the area per match, and also 18th in terms of shots on target.
Lots of things to fix during the break
“ It’s a set of things to review. You have to work on the mentality, the game, the tactics. We must continue to progress », assured Alonso. For the moment, the 44-year-old coach has not found the right balance despite all the talents at his disposal. Yesterday, Joao Pedro was missing for the first time this season, and it was Welbeck who took the lead, supported by Rogers and Palmer. Chance or coincidence, it is also the first time that the Blues have not scored in a match. The truce undoubtedly comes at the right time. Despite the absence of internationals, there will be work to do.
