Thomas Tuchel has warned his Chelsea players that finishing in the Premier League top four is not a given, and the defensive errors that have cost his side must be eradicated fast if the Blues are to end the season strongly.
Chelsea travelled up to Goodison Park to face Everton this afternoon, knowing that just six points from their remaining five top-flight fixtures would be enough to clinch Champions League football for next season. And perhaps that resulted in a lax performance from Tuchel's side.
The Blues were poor in the opening period despite dominating possession, and shortly after the restart, Richarlison was gifted a goal after a mistake from Cesar Azpilicueta. Chelsea attempted to fight back, and Jordan Pickford produced two fine stops to deny Antonio Rudiger and Mateo Kovacic, while Mason Mount struck both posts with a shot.
READ MORE: Thomas Tuchel unable to hide full-time anger as Chelsea star goes into the stand against Everton
But the visitors left Merseyside defeated once more, and Tuchel has told his players that a top-four finish should not be taken for granted during the season run-in. "I said many weeks ago that I didn't ever feel safe. We are never safe. By the way, if we are in a race for top one, top two, or top four, no matter what the race, the last four games to only have four points will never be enough, no matter which race we are in" he said.
"We have to take care of ourselves. At the moment, we don't get the points when we play well and deserve more, and we lose when we play okay, this is a bad mixture."
On the individual defensive mistakes that have hurt Chelsea in recent matches, Tuchel added: "What can I do? The ball is free, then give a goal away. It is the worst thing that can happen to you in this atmosphere and situation. It happens too often, and we struggle to play without big mistakes. That's why we struggle to have results.
"We knew what was coming, and like in the last matches, we struggled to have clean sheets. In the last four matches, we have one clean sheet against West Ham, and it is the only win we have. So I am very disappointed."
