Chelsea

Chelsea

Premier League • England

Graham Potter pinpoints key area holding Chelsea back as in-form youngster stakes further claim

Graham Potter Kalidou Koulibaly Chelsea 2022 TEAMtalk1

Graham Potter admitted that Chelsea need to up their level in the final third after watching his side blanked by Brentford in a goalless draw.

The Bees ended Chelsea’s winning Premier League start with the ex-Brighton chief at the helm. And they were unlucky not to come away with all three points. Both goalkeepers made several saves to keep the opposition at bay.

Ivan Toney and Bryan Mbeumo tested Blues keeper Kepa Arrizabalaga with headers. And Bees shot-stopper David Raya was also a busy man as Cesar Azpilicueta and Kai Havertz forced him into smart saves.

Potter brought on Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Christian Pulisic, with both stars forcing the home keeper into vital saves.

But neither side could make the breakthrough as the spoils were shared in west London.

It was far from a vintage display by the visitors as the Brentford defence held firm against their star-studded rivals. And Potter made it clear where his side need to improve.

“I always look at the team rather than individuals. I’d rather attack better,” he told reporters. “It’s not easy against Brentford. We were close with Kai, close with Mason but we can improve in that area I think.

And he added to Prime Video: “We’re always disappointed when we don’t win. Over the course of the game a point is fair, they had chances and we pushed at the end.

“It was a tough game against a team that makes it tough. We pushed and pushed and gave it everything.

“It’s not easy with the schedule but we put the effort in and I’m proud of them – it’s a hard-earned point.”

Potter pleased with Broja display

Armando Broja enjoyed his first Premier League start for the Blues. That came after he opened his account with a goal against Aston Villa at Stamford Bridge.

He was replaced by Raheem Sterling just after the hour mark and Potter was impressed by what he saw.

“We saw two or three actions in the first half of what he’s about. Brentford press high and Armando we thought we could use him,” he continued.

“Thought he did okay for his first game. Because it was his first game we thought 60 minutes enough.”

Potter looks to the future

Chelsea sit fourth in the standings after picking up a point at the Gtech Community Stadium.

They will have little time to recover before the arrival of Manchester United on Saturday.

And Potter knows that every point is vital with games coming thick and fast both domestically and in Europe.

“There’s no rest, we have to keep moving,” he said. “We’ve had two away games, Aston Villa and Brentford and four points is not too bad but we wanted to win.”

United’s 2-0 triumph over Tottenham means the Red Devils are now just a single point behind Chelsea heading into thr weekend clash.

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