CHELSEA boss Mauricio Pochettino said his side were second best to Liverpool in the “aggression” stakes after the Blues’ 4-1 defeat at Anfield on Wednesday night.
Jota and Conor Bradley had Jurgen Klopp’s hosts 2-0 up at half-time beforeDominik Szoboszlai added a third after the break.
It could have been a lot worse for Chelsea but Darwin Nunez hit the post from a penalty in first-half added-time, remarkably one of four times the Uruguayan struck the woodwork in the game.
Christopher Nkunku pulled a goal back but Luis Diaz made it an emphatic 4-1 as Pochettino’s side were well beaten
“I think it’s so clear, they were more aggressive than us,” Pochettino said. “For us it was difficult to connect and play. It was difficult to recover the ball at the first or the second touch. We lose the ball so easily. They won all the duels.
“When we say they compete better, in all of the areas they were better than us. This is why. Yes, in the second half of the game, at 2-0, we have a clear chance with [Mykhailo] Mudryk to score, maybe it would build our confidence and start to feel better.
“Maybe there’s a penalty in the action of Nkunku to change the game. But even if we score and draw, I think it’s disappointing because our performance wasn’t great. It’s good to have this type of feeling. It’s only a game but it has provided us with good information.
“We want to be there and compete with a team like Liverpool who have been very good over the last few years, one of the best in England. We need to improve and learn from this type of game.”
Liverpool struck a psychological blow ahead of the sides’ meeting in the EFL Cup final on February 25.
Pochettino added: “For sure we are going to be at Wembley, and it is going to be different at a neutral place. Of course that is always different. Of course, that is the feeling the players have now. It’s good because if we were to compete in the same way as today, for sure it is going to be the same result. If we don’t improve, then it’s going to be difficult.
“Always the games are different. Now it’s always different circumstances. For us, it’s about to learn in this type of game. We were competing against a team that is on the top and of course, it’s good for us to feel that we need to improve because the way we were talking from the beginning. Of course, we know the circumstance that we have but it’s to realise we need to push ourselves a little bit more.”
