Former Chelsea Players React to Team’s 3-1 Defeat at Arsenal : Chelsea were defeated for the sixth consecutive time across all competitions following their Premier loss at Arsenal who clinched an emphatic 3-1 victory on Tuesday night at the Emirates Stadium.
The Blues are 12th in the Premier League with 39 points in 33 games played. That is 39 points less than Arsenal whoa are back at the top of the table on 78 points in 34 matches as Manchester City go second again with their 76 points.
Cesc Fabregas working as a pundit for the game alongside Patrick Vieira and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, appeared to question Lampard’s tactics as they suffered their latest loss, though admitted the issue is deeper than simply the man in charge.
‘When I was little, I had a coach with 11 olives and he would throw them on the table with no tactics. This is how I see Chelsea,’ Fabregas, who made 198 appearances for the club between 2014 and 2019, said.
‘We saw two different sides. One was really well drilled and coached and Chelsea allowed that. Sometimes Chelsea, I couldn’t believe the tactical and technical mistakes. We are not used to it. They had World Cup winner, World Cup winner, World Cup finalists, Brazil captain. Sometimes it doesn’t matter.
‘It is difficult. I feel for Lampard. I completely understand where he is coming from in a way. It is just sometimes about the players, you need to look in the mirror yourself and ask questions. Nowadays what I see is the excuse to look at the manager. He doesn’t play, it’s the players showing up.’
Hasselbaink claimed Chelsea were ‘asking for trouble’ with their performance against their London rivals, insisting it was always going to fall apart if they didn’t try to deliver.
‘This is how harsh football can be when you’re not at it or do the fundamentals right or work hard enough,’ he said. ‘The intensity today was very low.
‘When you do those things the gaps are going to be big and the Premier League is unforgivable. You need to be at it every time. There are a lot of new players but certain things you need to see back. We didn’t see that in the first half today.’
The Blues seem set to appoint former Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino to take over next season, but an agreement is still yet to be reached.
The Argentinian will have a huge task on his hands if he does take over, having to cut several of the players from the squad Boehly built in the summer and trying to lift the club from their struggles.
Hasselbaink and Vieira, however, were in agreement, however, that whoever goes in will have to be backed in the long run.
‘If you go with Pochettino you need to follow him and support him, that is also from above, Hasselbaink said. ‘Give him the tools. It has to be a long-term job. You still need to win matches and he will, but let him be successful.
‘It will be important for Chelsea to finish the season well, Vieira added. ‘They have to win games because of who they are. They can think it’s over but they have to prepare for next season and give time to those players who want to be here next season.
‘It doesn’t matter who is going to come, what will be important is the person needs to have the keys of the car and make decisions and everyone at the football club has to be behind them and support them.
‘The success of Mikel Arteta at Arsenal came because everyone was behind him. Guardiola, Klopp. Make the decision and be 200 per cent behind the manager.
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