Chelsea captain Gary Cahill has pointed a finger at the club’s late night/early morning arrival back from their Champions League win over Atletico Madrid as a factor in their disappointing defeat to Manchester City at the weekend.
The Blues arrived back from Wednesday night’s 2-1 win over the Spanish side at four o’clock on Thursday morning, before playing Manchester City at Stamford Bridge at half past five on Saturday evening — quite a quick turnaround.
Speaking to the club’s official website, Cahill said:
We didn’t play as well as we can do or as well as we have been doing, but credit to them, they made it very difficult for us. It was a tough fixture for us to play, especially after coming back at four o’clock in the morning on Thursday.
It’s not an excuse but it’s a factor. We worked very hard for each other but we were a fraction off it and they were very, very good. Last season we were very confident playing at home so we will look to get back to that.
Ex-Chelsea midfielder Kevin de Bruyne scored a fantastic goal to earn Manchester City all three points on their travels, as the Blues’ start striker, Alvaro Morata, came off injured during the first half of the game.
The Spaniard had been in fine form for Chelsea but withdrew from the game against City in the 34th minute, and Cahill says it was a huge blow to the side:
You look at the way he has started his career at Chelsea and it was a huge blow for us to lose him early in the game
It affected elements of the game for us. His hold-up play as well as his finishing has been fantastic.
Chelsea’s next game is a trip to Selhurst Park on 14th October, after the international break in which Cahill will be hoping to lead England to World Cup qualification.
