On Saturday, Chelsea Football Club traveled to the Gtech Community Stadium to play Brentford FC in an important away game. While the visitors started the match on a positive note after Nicholas Jackson gave them the lead in the 35th minute, their performance in the second half was below par and almost cost them the game.
Weak defending from the Blues let Brentford respond with two goals in the second half. First, Mads Roerslev scored the equalizer for Brentford in the 50th minute, after which Yoane Wissa gave them a lead in the 69th minute. Just when many believed Chelsea would lose the game 2-1, Alexa Disai scored a late goal to draw the game 2-2.
Post-game, Chelsea Manager Mauricio Pochettino said that the Blues must defend better. Pochettino said it was hard to keep energy in the second half, and he felt that was key to the game. The Blues manager also said that his team isn't consistent at this moment. He said:
"We must defend better, of course, at a very difficult place to come. But we’ve had a tough three games in six days, and I think the effort was massive. It was hard to keep the energy in the second half. I think that was the key to the game. They played more direct. We were not consistent at this moment. We conceded and that changed the game, their belief increased. In the end, of course, we wanted all three points, but we are disappointed a little bit in the way we conceded and because the team made the effort to get all three."
With this loss, Chelsea find themselves in 11th position in the Premier League. This is a position the team would not want to stay in. Therefore, when they play their next game on March 11th, 2024, the Blues will hope to do things differently and register a win.
Chelsea FC will face Newcastle United in their next match
On March 11th, 2024, Chelsea will return to the Stamford Bridge to face Newcastle United in the Premier League. While home advantage will be a massive factor in this game, Newcastle looked phenomenal in their last match. Against Wolves at home, The Magpies managed to score three decent goals.
Given how Chelsea defended in their last match, they will have to be more vigilant against a talented Newcastle attack. If the Blues are able to win this match, they will be on th right track to achieve a better position in the Premier League.