Following Chelsea’s loss to Arsenal last night, Andreas Christensen said that he and his Chelsea teammates discussed their poor defensive record.
As quoted by the club website, Christensen explained that the topic of conceding goals came up in the dressing room after allowing the Gunners to score four times.
At Stamford Bridge yesterday, Thomas Tuchel’s side suffered their second consecutive Premier League defeat, and their third in all competitions. In their two league games, they have allowed their opponents to score four goals.
Brentford overcame the European champions 4-1 before Arsenal beat Brentford 4-2 across the metropolis. Mikel Arteta’s team was undoubtedly helped by some dubious defense from the boys in blue.
For the opener, Christensen was to blame, as he attempted a sloppy ball to Edouard Mendy, which Eddie Nketiah graciously accepted. The Danish international didn’t have much time to redeem his mistake, as Tuchel dragged him off at half-time.
Despite Thiago Silva entering the fray, the Blues gifted Arsenal two goals in the second half, having already opened their gates to Emile Smith Rowe just before the 30-minute mark.
Nketiah’s second of the evening was set up by their failure to clear their lines on many occasions. Cesar Azpilicueta then brought Bukayo Saka down in the box, giving the England international an opportunity to score from close range.
In summary, the Champions League holders put in an out-of-character performance, albeit such outbursts have become all too common in recent months.
“Since Thomas arrived at the club, we’ve always been strong defensively,” said Christensen after the match. “That’s been our base to work from and then knowing that our quality upfront guarantees goals. “Being solid at the back has always been a priority and recently, it’s been kind of the opposite.
“We spoke about it in the dressing room, because we’ve now conceded 10 goals in our last three home games and that’s nowhere near good enough.”