Mauricio Pochettino has stood by Robert Sanchez after the Chelsea goalkeeper made another high-profile error in the Blues' 2-0 loss against Brentford on Saturday.
Sanchez was caught out when he went up for a late corner as his side trailed the Bees at Stamford Bridge. Thomas Frank's men broke fast as the goalkeeper raced back towards his goal, but Neal Maupay retained possession under pressure and allowed Bryan Mbeumo to roll the ball into an empty net.
After a week in which Sanchez's ability was already under question, Pochettino defended his man post-match.
“I think it’s about getting experience,” he told FFT columnist Jules Breach on TNT Sports. “He wants to be a keeper here at Chelsea and to be at a big club you need to deal with these situations. Helping is giving our confidence and trust to him and of course working hard every day.”
It is not the first time Sanchez has come under the microscope since moving to London from Brighton in the summer.
The Spaniard also enabled Arsenal to mount a comeback and secure a point from the Blues the previous week, misplacing a pass that led to Declan Rice striking in from distance.
“We are there to help, and we are helping him,” Pochettino said before the Brentford game.
“He is very relaxed. He is calm. He is very good. We know football is about mistakes. The whole team is responsible, and we the coaching staff first because we relay the idea of how we want to play. To blame someone is to blame us, to blame myself, but not him because he is delivering what we want.
“You can miss a penalty, you can miss a pass. That's football. He has shown great character and personality and for sure today [against Brentford] he is going to be great.”
The error will pile pressure onto Sanchez and Pochettino's shoulders after Chelsea sold Edouard Mendy and loaned out Kepa Arrizabalaga in the summer. Their second choice, Dorde Petrovic, has yet to play competitively for the Blues since signing in August.
But Pochettino appeared concerned with his side's attack following Chelsea's fourth consecutive home match without a win.
“I am not happy,” he said of the home form. “I think the players also and all the club are not happy about the run. It's a long, long time and we need to be consistent here. Very, very disappointed with this of course. I don't know if ‘worry’ is the right word but we feel we need to change the dynamic.”
Chelsea stories
Chelsea are reportedly seeking a £500 million loan in order to continue buying players, despite an outlay of around £1 billion over the past year.
And Blues manager Mauricio Pochettino has revealed that the west London club have “already started to work” on January signings.
Bringing in a striker is understood to be a priority and Napoli's Victor Osimhen is one potential target, with the Nigerian's future in Italy up in the air after he was bizarrely mocked by his own club on social media recently.
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