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Mauricio Pochettino has vowed to use the empty weeks that highlight the demise of Chelsea to get them back up and running again. Hopefully, he jokes, he might even be able to make the club\u2019s owners happy again!<\/p>\n
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has been extremely vocal at voicing his discontent at the fixture schedule. While the so-called \u201cbig clubs\u201d of various countries are involved in European competition, Pochettino has some uninterrupted training ground time having failed to qualify.<\/p>\n
Despite the frustration of conceding two goals in the last 13 minutes against Arsenal, Saturday\u2019s performance against Arsenal was undoubtedly the best of Pochettino\u2019s reign at Chelsea.<\/p>\n
Moreover, coming as it did after a period where his international band of Todd Boehly-sponsored mercenaries were cast to the four corners of the globe, the Blues manager knows he can get even more out of his players, given time. Although \u201ctime\u201d is not a luxury in too much abundance at Stamford Bridge.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s crazy for players to come back from America on Wednesday and play on Saturday,\u201d Pochettino said. \u201cBut if I say, \u2018Okay, I\u2019m going to give them a rest,\u2019 you will kill me, for sure, if they don\u2019t play. And the owner also! Today Moises Caceido and Enzo Fernandez arrived after two games in America and they were not fresh.<\/p>\n
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\u201cBut they are important players for us. So now we are going to have a week to work and for sure they are going to be better and improve.\u201d<\/p>\n
That goes for the whole squad as a number of pieces are snapping into place. The impressive Cole Palmer literally wrestled the hit-and-miss penalty-taking duties of Raheem Sterling to give Chelsea the lead and a fluke cross-cum-shot from Mykhailo Mudryk doubled the lead immediately after the break.<\/p>\n
Club captain Reece James made a late cameo as he continues to build fitness as the fact it coincided with Arsenal\u2019s salvage operation was nothing more than coincidence.<\/p>\n
That damage was self-inflicted elsewhere. First goalkeeper Robert Sanchez gave the ball straight to Declan Rice whose perfectly executed first-time shot from 25 yards unerringly found the corner of the net.<\/p>\n
Then Malo Gusto turned off for just a second, gave Leandro Trossard a run on him, and the former Brighton player volleyed neatly past the Chelsea goalkeeper with the outside of his foot.<\/p>\n