Is there any update on Reece James, are you any clearer on what’s happened?
“No, not really. It’s too soon. It’s the same area [he injured previously] so we’re concerned. We’ll have to see in the next 24/48 hours.”
It seemed very innocuous, was there a particular moment it happened?
“It’s a bit too soon but I think there was that action, a chop, and he felt something then. We’ll have to see the extent of it and keep our fingers crossed.”
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Have you spoken to him at all?
“He is disappointed, of course. But again, we’re right now at a stage where we’re just hoping it isn’t as bad and we’re keeping our fingers crossed.”
How has he been during his recovery because it was obviously a blow for him to miss the World Cup?
“He has been really disappointed to miss the World Cup of course. It was a huge blow for him and he wanted to give himself every chance to be in the squad. You can see today with his quality what he brings to the team. He has had to deal with the injury and try to get back fit. I think he’s done that well.
"We were taking steps and the plan was for him to not play 90 tonight. He was to play 60/65 minutes which was a build-up from what he did previously. So now he’s disappointed and we’ve just got to hope it’s not as bad as it was and he can get on a speedy recovery.”
Mason Mount said after the game that Chelsea want to be back at the top of the table and needed the win badly tonight. I assume you echo that feeling and share those views?
“Yes, but you always have to look at it in two ways. We haven’t been perfect ourselves and we can’t say we were playing well in the last two or three weeks, at least, of the Premier League campaign before the break. We didn’t perform well and we didn’t get the results we wanted. So you understand all the criticism that comes your way – and the pressure and expectation.
"Of course, you can have a different conversation in terms of the challenges we had, the injuries we’ve had, and the World Cup coming, but they are just reasons. We have to balance both and get a bit of perspective. You have to remember what this club has been through over a short period of time in terms of transition.
"It’s been very, very significant and you have to deal with that, try to stabilise, and try to improve the team. That’s where we’re at.”
The ownership has been clear in the fact they’re willing to back you but sometimes fans maybe don’t understand what the club and you are trying to do. Would you hope they understand the path the club are trying to take?
“Of course, I hope they do, but I can also understand that when we’re not playing well and things don’t look as they would like, everybody gets frustrated. I understand that. I’m not naive, I know there will be people saying I’m not good, or this or that. It’s happened throughout my career.
"If you go back to Ostersunds and go on a website from the first 18 months, Potter was rubbish. So that is normal. There will be people in this room who think the same but I can probably give you a lot of evidence to suggest otherwise. Thankfully, they [the owners] have a similar opinion and there has been a lot of support out there for me in terms of interactions I’ve had with our supporters that understand the situation we’re in and are very supportive.
"But haven’t been perfect so we have to accept any criticism that comes our way when we don’t get the performances and results we want here.”
After Reece went off, the performance seemed to lose its way. Why do you feel that happened?
“It’s probably a little bit of everything. Reece was playing well and he’s a top player. As much as we think coaches are magicians, believe you me if you have top players it makes the coach’s job a lot easier. You can see the quality Reece brings down that right in the first half, especially and to see him go off, it affects the stadium, the team, everything. That isn’t an excuse but we’re human beings and he is someone we care a lot about.
"There is going to be some concern and worry and I think that’s natural. Given the results we’ve had too, you want to try to hold on to your win and I think that affected our performance in the second half.”
Can you describe how important Reece is to what you want to do with this Chelsea team?
“Reece is a world-class player. You see it from the outside but it’s not until you work with him how good he is. He is an incredible player, one who would fit into any team in the world. Any team would miss him.”
A deal for Benoit Badiashile appears to be in the pipeline, any thoughts on him?
“My answer is I don’t speak about anyone that isn’t a Chelsea player. There are lots of people who get linked to this club and I’d be wasting your time and mine if I responded to every one. I always say the club’s responsibility is to try to improve the team but my job is to try to improve the players we have here and the team. That’s what I’ll be focused on.”
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