The blues endured a terrible 45-minute against Brighton at the American Express Community Stadium on Saturday as the blues were losing 3 goals in the first half.
Chelsea’s unbeaten run of 9 games both in the Premier League and the Champions League under Graham Potter was brought to an end as Graham Potter’s side were defeated 4-1 by Brighton.
Kepa Arrizabalaga was seen in some discomfort in the first half. The Spaniard was replaced after the break by Edouard Mendy.
The Spanish international has been in great form under Graham Potter and is the only Chelsea player to start all 10 games under Graham Potter. Kepa has kept five clean sheets in those matches. His impressive performance has earned him a place in Spain’s provisional 55-man World Cup squad ahead of Manchester United David de Gea.
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Graham Potter has revealed that Kepa felt some pains in the bottom of his feet during the game.
What did Graham Potter say about his decision to substitute Kepa Arrizabalaga after the break?
The Chelsea manager said at a Press Conference after the game: “He felt the bottom of his foot, so I don’t know, it’s too early yet. It was too bad for him to carry on. So that is disappointing for him because he is in a really good moment.”
Asked if he planned to use Eduoard Mendy against Dinamo Zagreb on Wednesday in the Champions League, he added: “We hadn’t thought about it, to be honest. The full focus was on this game. But if he [Kepa] is injured, it gives Mendy a chance.”
Meanwhile, Graham Potter has admitted that he was responsible for Chelsea’s defeat to Brighton.
The 47-year-old said: “Yeah, you could say that, especially if you see the game. As I said to the players, if you lose, you have to look at it, and if you’ve made a mistake or got things wrong, you have to analyze it and do better. That is part of our job, part of the process, and if we’ve got that wrong, I have to take responsibility and do better. I’d rather look at it from that perspective.
“You have to congratulate Brighton as well. They did what they do well. We had some opportunities ourselves, and the scoreline makes it feel a little bit worse than it was in terms of us having opportunities and touches in the box that were similar to them. They have a couple of own goals. We have a couple of chances. In the end, it felt probably a little bit too open for us, and that is my responsibility.”
Potter has also defended his decision to play Raheem Sterling and Christian Pulisic as wingbacks.
Many pundits and fans have criticized Graham Potter over the decision to deploy Pulisic and Sterling as wingbacks as the duo failed to do their defensive duties.
He added: “The responsibility for those two wasn’t to defend against their wing-backs, but I understand that whenever you do something, and it doesn’t work, you look a bit of a fool. That is how it is. I have to accept that, deal with that, do better, and I’ll learn. That’s the process.”
