• “I am not happy. The players and the club also aren’t,” Pochettino told TNT Sports.
• On Saturday, Chelsea were largely the better side but were again wasteful in front of goal — only managing two shots on target.
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Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino said he was “not happy” with his side’s home form as their torrid run at Stamford Bridge continued with a 2-0 loss to Brentford.
Chelsea have won only one of their past 13 home Premier League matches, beating newly promoted Luton in August. They are 11th in the table with three wins from 10 games.
“I am not happy. The players and the club also aren’t,” Pochettino told TNT Sports. “It’s a long time that we need to be more consistent here. We feel that we need to change that dynamic.”
Brentford became the first side in Premier League history to win each of their first three games against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the competition – meaning boss Thomas Frank has more league wins at Chelsea’s home ground than their two most recent managers combined.
Interim boss Frank Lampard failed to record a victory across five home matches last season, while Pochettino has managed one at home since his appointment in the summer. Pochettino has led Chelsea to home wins over Wimbledon and Brighton in the Carabao Cup.
On Saturday, Chelsea were largely the better side but were again wasteful in front of goal — only managing two shots on target.
Initially, they cut through Brentford at will, with Noni Madueke curling an early effort against a post. The hosts should have opened the scoring when Cole Palmer crossed for an unmarked Marc Cucurella midway through the first half, but his first-time shot was straight at Mark Flekken.
“We need to be more nasty in the last third. We need to be more clinical,” Pochettino told BBC Match of the Day. “It’s a very young group who need to improve in this area more than any other.”
Chelsea have failed to score in four of their 10 league games this season and, of the 10 teams above them in the table, only Manchester United have scored fewer than their 13 goals.
Based on the quality of Chelsea’s chances created this season, they have scored six goals fewer than they should have done according to their expected goals (xG of 19). Last season was similar, with 38 goals scored against an xG of 50 — and their statistic of 12 fewer goals scored than expected was the worst in the Premier League.
The Blues lost new £52m striker Christopher Nkunku for “an extended period” in pre-season after surgery on an injured knee, with Pochettino saying he could be back towards the end of November, after the next international break.
“It’s in their heads now,” said former Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole on TNT Sports about their scoring problems.
“As a group, they have to find a way of getting out of it. When you’ve gone on a run like these players have gone on, subconsciously you’re not making those runs or you’re doing them too late.”