Mauricio Pochettino had another tough night as Chelsea boss (Picture: Getty Images)
Mauricio Pochettino admitted his Chelsea team were second best in defeat to Manchester United on Wednesday night, saying the Blues could not match the energy of the Red Devils.
The home team won 2-1 at Old Trafford thanks to two goals from Scott McTominay either side of a Cole Palmer equaliser.
The result leaves Chelsea 10th in the Premier League table with just five wins from their opening 15 matches and Pochettino admits that his team were not up to scratch against a side that had been struggling for form themselves.
‘I am disappointed because we didn’t start the game well,’ he said. ‘The feeling is that they started better than us, showing more energy than us. We couldn’t match the energy. I think they were better than us and there’s nothing I can say.
‘The second half we started well but then we conceded and again I think we missed a little bit the energy to be more aggressive. We had some chances but not enough to get back in the game again. But overall my feeling is that they were better than us and deserved the three points.’
The Blues boss was disappointed but apparently not concerned by his team’s performance as he felt that his team had good reason for feeling more leggy than their opponents.
Chelsea played half the game against Brighton on Sunday with 10 men after Conor Gallagher was sent off, while Manchester United played a day earlier at the weekend.
‘I’m not worried because there’s too many circumstances which need to explain why we didn’t perform,’ said Pochettino.
Pochettino’s side were second best at Old Trafford (Picture: Getty Images)
‘To play with Brighton with one less for so long may have affected the energy, and we need to recover too many players from injury, to have different options and be more competitive.
‘That’s not an excuse, only that they were better. In which percentage? Maybe 10 per cent, but we need to be focused, recover the players and get ready for Sunday.
‘We miss players, we played nearly with the same players we faced Brighton with, and we were a man down for 60 minutes.’
‘Manchester United had a day more to prepare, and we had many young players on our bench. It’s not an excuse, but that’s the reality.’
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