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Chelsea were defeated by Aston Villa on Saturday with Reece James and Moises Caicedo giving their verdicts on the result
Reece James and Moises Caicedo believe Chelsea only have themselves to blame for their defeat to Aston Villa.
The Blues dominated in the first half at Stamford Bridge and should have had more to show for it than a single goal scored by Joao Pedro, who flicked in James’ corner. Ollie Watkins came off the bench after the break to stun the hosts with two goals as Villa were completely revived by Unai Emery’s substitutions, while Chelsea were wrongfooted.
“We dominated 60, 65 minutes of the game,” said James. “We came out sharp with the way we set up, we got off on the front foot and in the right way.
“In the first 60 minutes they didn’t create any chances, and then they get one and the dynamic changes. We knew they’d make substitutions and the shape changed slightly but it was nothing we shouldn’t have been able to deal with. We understand the style and the way they want to play. We have ourselves to blame.
“Second half one or two moments changed the game. They picked up momentum. It was two slight errors from us and we got punished. This is why it’s the toughest league in the world. It’s always disappointing to lose at home.”
Caicedo, who picked up his fourth yellow card of the season in the league against Villa, agreed with James. "It’s painful because we were controlling the game," the midfielder said.
"The first half was so good and we started the second half well and could have won, even after the first goal they scored. For sure we were frustrated because we were doing a great job, but when you do not concentrate for the whole game in the Premier League it’s going to happen."
Chelsea have just one win to show from their last six Premier League matches as they have slumped from second to outside the top four. Enzo Maresca's side host Bournemouth on Tuesday night and James has called on the Blues squad to bounce back with a win.
“Many teams have spells in the season when they’re underperforming,” the England international said. “We have to keep chipping away game by game. We are fighting every day, we want to get better.
“We have to put this game behind this and look forward because we have another game in a few days (against Bournemouth) which we have to prepare right for, come back and win.”
Caicedo added: "We need to keep learning from this because we were there, up, but in the Premier League you need to be consistent to stay up. So we need to keep learning. This is not just a loss, it’s a chance to learn, and for sure we’re going to come back even stronger.
"It’s important for us, for the fans, to end the year in a good way. So we’re just going to learn from this and focus on the next game because we want to give everything."
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