“In the dressing room” – Chalobah finally reveals why Chelsea lost to Man City ahead of Arsenal clash
Trevoh Chalobah of Chelsea acknowledges that losing to Manchester City in the FA Cup semi-final was a difficult pill to chew, but he also says that the Blues need to bounce back soon because they have “seven finals” in the Premier League.
Chelsea was narrowly defeated by Pep Guardiola’s team at Wembley, despite having more clear-cut opportunities over the 90 minutes of play.
City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega twice stopped Nicolas Jackson, and a handball penalty claim was dismissed. With a late goal from Bernardo Silva, City advanced to the championship game, and the Blues were mercilessly eliminated from the competition.
The loss in the FA Cup marked the end of Chelsea’s hopes for silverware this season, and Chalobah’s disappointment was palpable as he left the pitch post-match. The academy graduate put in a strong performance at Wembley, but conceded that the lack of precision in the final third cost the Blues.
“The game plan of the manager we worked on the last few days definitely showed,” the 24-year-old explained. “We stuck to that game plan and it was just the final details – finding the back of the net – that we lacked.
“It’s a tough one today because we had chances. What we have to do is learn from these types of experiences. We’ve been here twice this season and a new group of boys have now had a feel for what being at Wembley is like. Hopefully, we have that again next season and we have to up our levels to get into the final.”
Mauricio Pochettino and his squad have little time to dwell on past performances as they regrouped at Cobham today for recovery work and to start preparations for Tuesday night’s Premier League showdown with Arsenal. Chelsea, currently sitting ninth in the top-flight table, know a win over the Gunners will further close the gap to the clubs in the European places.
“We have to really focus and get the boys together because we’ve got another seven finals ahead of us to make things right,” Chalobah said. “We want to show up for the fans and get the club where it should be up the table.”