Chelsea: Joao Pedro reveals who must take responsibility for dismal run of results

Joao Pedro called for his Chelsea team-mates to look inwards for answers after they slumped to a sixth consecutive Premier League defeat.

The Blues were stunned by relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest in their own back-yard on Monday afternoon, losing 3-1 after the Brazilian forward pulled one back with an injury-time bicycle kick .

Liam Rosenior was relieved of his duties after losing seven times in an eight-match run, but Chelsea’s fortunes have not improved under interim boss Calum McFarlane.

This latest defeat sees them slip to ninth in the Premier League, with their chances of qualifying for Europe rapidly dwindling.

The one constant in this dismal spell, then, is the squad, and Joao Pedro implored his team-mates to undertake some self-reflection as they look to get back to form ahead of the FA Cup final, which is now just 12 days away.

“From the beginning, we concede too early and against Nottingham, it is difficult to change the game,” he told Sky Sports.

“We should do better.

“We need to find a way to undo these mistakes every game, and start to win games because this is the Premier League.

If you concede too early it is very difficult to come back.”
Chelsea conceded twice in the first quarter of an hour against Forest, and also conceded early against Brighton the week before.

Joao Pedro continued: “I think everyone needs to look to themselves, me also included.

We need to find a way to do better.

“I feel sorry for the fans, and we need to see where we can improve.

He acknowledged, too, that Chelsea are now facing an uphill battle to qualify for Europe in any capacity, with a Champions League place seeming less likely than ever.

“The motivation is always there.

If we won, we would have been able to be in the Champions League.

Now it is more difficult.

But we still need to fight for every point and every game."