Mauricio Pochettino conceded Chelsea are missing something after they failed to defeat 10-man Burnley in what he reflected had been a “must-win” game at Stamford Bridge, which ended 2-2.
Cole Palmer’s goal, drilled into the bottom corner from Raheem Sterling’s delightful flick with 12 minutes to play, looked to have nicked it for the hosts, restoring the lead after Josh Cullen had whacked Burnley level on the volley early in the second half.
Palmer had earlier given Chelsea the lead from the penalty spot, converting after Lorenz Assignon had fouled Mykhailo Mudryk and been shown a second yellow card, whilst a furious Vincent Kompany was also dismissed from the touchline for remonstrating.
But Pochettino was left to rue another frustrating result when, minutes after Palmer had made it 2-1, Dara O’Shea got forward from a corner, evaded everybody in blue inside the box and headed the ball through the clumsy grasp of goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic to salvage the visitors a point.
“Today we didn’t show the capacity, the energy, the hunger,” said Pochettino. “Not the minimum to compete in the Premier League. In defensive phases, we concede too much.
“That is why I’m so upset and disappointed. It’s more here (in the heart) and here (in the head) than in your legs. It’s about being strong like a group, strong like a team.
“We are too slow evolving in this area. That was the key today. The team played well, we had energy. When we have the ball, we go forwards.
“But when we didn’t have the ball, we don’t have the same energy. Today, sorry, I am not happy with the performance when we don’t have the ball.
“It’s difficult to accept not to win. It was a must-win game to be in a position to attack (the table).”
At five games, Chelsea’s unbeaten league run is now the longest they have enjoyed in almost 18 months, but there was little positive cheer shown by fans at the end towards Pochettino and his players.
In failing to beat the Premier League’s second-bottom side, they lost further ground in what looks an increasingly doomed bid to qualify for Europe via their league placing.
Pochettino felt that his team’s problems in turning performances into points ultimately had a psychological root.
“(The players) need to realise that competing is different to playing football,” he said. “We can be there and play, but we need to increase our level.
“It’s not about blaming the players. Maybe we (the coaching staff) need to be tougher with them.
“We need to be more ruthless, find better communication, be more competitive.
“We are missing something. That’s why we are where we are. When we don’t have the ball we need to increase our capacity to recover it.”
Burnley’s assistant manager Craig Bellamy reflected on a performance of which the travelling supporters could be proud.
“To be able to show the patience they showed, working together, the organisation, the commitment, you couldn’t be nothing short of proud watching it,” he said.
Vardy eyes 100-point season after Leicester's title win
Jamie Vardy has challenged his Leicester City team-mates to reach 100 points after sealing the Championship title with one game to spare.
The Foxes were promoted back to the Premier League without kicking a ball after Leeds United’s 4-0 defeat to QPR on Friday, but they needed to win on Monday to earn top spot.
Enzo Maresca’s side cruised to a 3-0 victory over Preston through Vardy’s brace and Kasey McAteer’s header, moving them to 97 points.
With one last milestone in their reach, Vardy wants to make sure they end an already successful season on a high.
Speaking to Sky Sports, he said: “We can celebrate it tonight, but now we have another target which is 100 points.
“We are over the moon. It has gone by quick but it's a graft. Not many days off, I'll tell you that.
“The lads - they've given it all. Thoroughly deserved, and I'm glad we've had 5000 to come and celebrate with us. It's not like it's 20 minutes up the road."
After a run of just three victories from nine games in the league between mid-February and April, Leicester have now won each of their last three outings.
Maresca has praised his players for their hard work in what he labelled a “tough season”.
“Fantastic, it's been a fantastic season. The Championship is a tough season and very intense, but I'm very happy," said Maresca.
"Now it's time to enjoy the work of the season to bring this special club back to the Premier League. We deserve it.
“The last two days they have been fantastic. We got promoted, but it was difficult in game preparation. But we used all of today to prepare for the game, the morning and afternoon. It was good.”
Barcelona 4-2 Valencia: Lewandowski hat-trick leads Barca to 4-2 win over 10-man Valencia
Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski scored a second-half hat-trick to help his side fight back to claim a hard-fought 4-2 win over Valencia, who were leading 2-1 when they were reduced to 10 men just before the break.
Fermin Lopez's header from a Raphinha cross put Barca in front after 22 minutes, but Valencia's Hugo Duro struck in the 27th and Pepelu scored from the spot after a foul by Ronald Araujo 11 minutes later to give the visitors the lead.
But after Valencia keeper Giorgi Mamardashvili saw red for a handball outside the box before the break, Xavi's side dominated and Lewandowski scored with two headers from corners in the 49th and 82nd minutes before getting his treble with a free-kick in added time.
The win postponed Real Madrid's almost inevitable LaLiga title celebrations for a couple of weeks as Carlo Ancelotti's side sit atop the standings on 84 points.
Barcelona moved back to second in LaLiga on Monday with 73 points as they leapfrogged surprise package Girona, who are third with 71. Those two teams will meet in a Catalonia derby on Saturday.
Data debrief
Barcelona conceded two goals in the first half of a home game for the second time this season, after also doing so against Girona in LaLiga in December 2023.
However, Lewandowski's goals have been invaluable to La Blaugrana this season as he's earned 17 points with his 16 goals in the league.
Kimmich ready to open Bayern Munich talks amid Barcelona speculation
Joshua Kimmich is ready to open talks with Bayern Munich over his future at the club amid speculation linking him with Barcelona.
The Germany international has spent nine years at the Allianz Arena, but he is due to become a free agent at the end of the 2024-25 campaign.
Barca have been repeatedly linked with Kimmich in recent transfer windows and are said to retain an interest ahead of next season.
Speaking to Spanish outlet AS, the midfielder talked up Barca - as well as fierce rivals Real Madrid - but fell short of saying he is open to a move.
"I want to talk to Bayern. When I do that, I won't go out and talk to the press about it," he said.
"I'm not thinking about this. I will speak to Bayern first. But of course, Barcelona and Real Madrid are amazing clubs with an amazing history."
Kimmich has played 37 times in all competitions this season for Bayern, whose last remaining hope of silverware is in the Champions League.
Bayern will face Real Madrid over two legs for a place in the final, with the first match in that double-header taking place in Bavaria on Tuesday.
Thomas Tuchel will depart the dethroned Bundesliga champions at the end of the season, with Ralf Rangnick the favourite to succeed him.
The managerial uncertainty is not helping with regards to the Kimmich rumours, but he insists that will not be a deciding factor on his future.
"It's not the most important thing right now," he said. "I know that when you sign a contract you don't sign it with the coach.
"You sign it with the club. For me, the most important thing is the club, not just the coach.
"But it's also important to know what the coach thinks about you and the team. Other people in the club can worry about choosing the coach."
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
