Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino has criticized Chelsea supporters for booing his players after their draw against Bournemouth.
Pochettino’s side played out a goalless 0-0 draw at Bournemouth in the fifth round of the English Premier League (EPL) on Sunday. With one win, two draws, and five points from five league games, Chelsea has dropped to 14th place. Their only win was a 3-0 victory over promoted Luton. The slow start has left Chelsea fans angry and disappointed.
After full-time, Ben Chilwell approached the Chelsea away end and appeared to raise his hand in apology, only to be scratched. A chorus of expletives and boos erupted from the crowd of angry and frustrated fans.
Pochettino questioned what he could do in the situation, saying supporters’ expectations were too high with 12 first-team players missing through injury. “When you invest money, there are expectations,” Pochettino said. “When you invest money, you have expectations. If you don’t win, it’s natural that the fans are not happy,” he admitted, “but what I can tell them is that it’s a situation we can’t change. It’s a reality that we can’t change,” he said. “We have too many injuries. We are a team that can be strong together. If all the players are healthy, we can compete for everything.”
Pochettino criticized the Chelsea fans for booing his team. “Why are we different, because we don’t have the whole squad available from the beginning of the season. What should we do? I have no words. The fans can do whatever they want,” he said. “We know what we have to do. We have a strong belief, but now we have 12 players injured. And we have three or four young players on the bench. Should I cry, should I complain? I have to accept this situation, this challenge, and continue to think positively.”
“We will not change. We have our opinions and we have our realities. We evaluate our team in the context of both opinion and reality. We are doing better than people expect. But the expectation at Chelsea is always to win,” he said. “I can understand the fans’ feelings of frustration because we want to win. I believe the fans will help the team win on Sunday against Aston Villa.”
With five points from five games and the fans booing, Pochettino asked, “What can I do?” before adding, “You have to keep believing” and expressing his trust in the squad. 먹튀검증
“If you give me a game where we have all the players, we have the signings, we have no injuries, and we don’t win, okay, I tell people, ‘That’s right. We have to think about it in a different way,’ but given all the circumstances, I don’t think I should lie to people,” he said, keeping a firm grip on reality.
“Of course we are Chelsea. But this is a new squad and we need to understand and feel what it means to be a Chelsea player. It’s normal to create expectations and if you don’t fulfill them, you find other excuses,” he added. Pochettino is confident that Chelsea will undoubtedly be better when the injured players return.