Pochettino ‘so upset’ at Chelsea for lacking ‘hunger’ in draw،
Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino accused his players of lacking the hunger needed to compete in the Premier League after his side were held to a 2-2 draw at home by 10-man Burnley on Saturday.
Despite Cole Palmer's double, struggling Burnley twice came from behind and Dara O'Shea equalized late at Stamford Bridge.
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Amid a mediocre season, Chelsea remain in 11th place, while Burnley are 19th in the table, four points from safety.
“Today we did not show the ability, the energy, the hunger which are the minimum to compete in the Premier League,” Pochettino said in his post-match press conference. “In the defensive phase we conceded too much. That's why I'm so upset and disappointed.
“It’s not here anymore. [pointing to his heart] and more here [pointing to his head] than in your legs. It's more about being stronger as a group, stronger as a team. For various reasons we are moving so slowly in this area and that is the key today.
“It's not about making excuses, but the team played well, we had energy when we went forward, but when we didn't have the ball we didn't show the same energy.”
Chelsea were wasteful in the first half and had a goal ruled out after 20 minutes. The Blues took the lead from the spot when Palmer scored by firing his penalty ball into the middle of the goal.
The decision, after a VAR check, to award the penalty to Chelsea for a foul on Mykhailo Mudryk in the box left Burnley manager Vincent Kompany furious. Kompany received a red card for his vehement protest. Lorenz Assignon, who received a second yellow card for dragging Mudryk, was also sent off.
Burnley fought back and equalized against the run of play when Josh Cullen volleyed home from 25 yards.
Palmer restored Chelsea's lead in the 78th minute thanks to a shot from Raheem Sterling, but O'Shea snatched the equalizer with a header mishandled by goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic.
“We are very disappointed and frustrated that we did not manage the situation in the second half,” added Pochettino. “We are a team that, when we play with possession and we move forward, we are able to create many chances, but we have not scored with the chances we have created. We need to increase our goal percentage .”
Palmer became the fifth player to reach 20 goals in his first Premier League season with Chelsea. But that was little consolation for the England international.
“The dressing room is really broken down,” he told Sky Sports. “When they went down to 10 men, we were leading 1-0 and we were too comfortable. Same story, we are killing ourselves every week. We have to improve as players.
“We had a lot of chances and then that time we defended sloppy. It's very disappointing. On a personal level it's good to score two points, but if you don't get the three points counts for nothing.
“I think it's our consistency all over the field, being alive and not switching off like we did today. It's poor, it can't happen. Especially when they go down to 10. “
Chelsea will look to make a quick recovery when they host Manchester United at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League on Thursday.
“It's difficult to accept not winning the match, because I think it was a match that we had to win to have a chance of being in a different position,” Pochettino said.
“We have to accept it, we have to recover from this situation. On Thursday we have another game here and we have to have the energy to be competitive. We have to clear our heads now.”
Associated Press reporting contributed to this report.
