Graham Potter highlights the broader context of Chelsea’s poor performance as injury concerns
2 min read
Chelsea manager, Graham Potter admitted his team must “ride out any storm” after their poor run continued despite a credible performance against Manchester City.
The Blues remain tenth in the table following a 1-0 loss to Pep Guardiola’s side at Stamford Bridge, with Riyad Mahrez’s second-half goal leaving Chelsea as close to the relegation zone as the top four.
The hosts’ match got off to a disastrous start when Raheem Sterling was forced off against his former club after only a few minutes of play, followed by Christian Pulisic, who also picked up an injury and quickly followed him down the tunnel.
There is already a long list of injured players, including Reece James, Ben Chilwell, and Wesley Fofana, but Chelsea responded well to the setbacks and were the better side in the first half.
They struggled after the break as City produced a brilliant 20-minute comeback, but Potter was pleased with his team’s effort given the circumstances.
“When you consider everything, especially losing Raheem and Christian so early, the lads gave everything,” Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho told Sky Sports.
“It was a spirited performance against a top team, so apart from the result I’m proud of the players.
“It’s tough at the moment I must admit and I feel for the boys. We must band together. It was disappointing to lose those players, but the players on the field and those who came in gave everything they had, and that’s all that can be asked for.
“You always have to take responsibility but you hope people look at the whole context and see where we are and what we have had to deal with but at the same time emotions are high and you have to try and ride out any storm and try to stay level. The audience was cheering for the team and could see them doing everything.”
