Cesc Fabregas EXCLUSIVE: Win over Manchester United is exactly what Chelsea need for boost after Roma loss

EXCLUSIVE
Roman misery: Cesc Fabregas has appealed to his Chelsea team-mates to bounce back
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Simon Johnson3 November 2017

It has been another difficult week in Chelsea’s season, but Cesc Fabregas sees no cause for alarm just yet.

As we met to discuss the season ahead of a huge match against Manchester United at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, one might have expected the midfielder to be in a sombre mood.

Less than 48 hours earlier, he was part of the side humbled 3-0 by Roma in the Champions League. For the doom-mongers, it was further evidence Chelsea are on the verge of imploding like they did two seasons ago, and that Antonio Conte’s job is on the line.

The fallout from the Roma match continued on Friday, with headlines suggesting that Conte has warned his players to improve or face being dropped. All of this is hardly ideal preparation ahead of the return of their former boss, Jose Mourinho, with his United side.

But this is where Fabregas shows his value is more than in just providing assist after assist, his experienced voice bringing some much-needed calm. “There is no need to panic,” he said. “This season can definitely be a success. The situation is not terrible. We are in the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup and are second in a Champions League group that has Roma and Atletico Madrid in it — two teams that many were fearing.

“We are only four points behind Manchester United in the league. OK, Manchester City are nine points clear of us, but we were in the same position last year (the gap to City was eight at the end of September 2016).

“I know that maybe people don’t share this, but we are not in a bad predicament. November has only just started. Yes, we could be better in the Premier League, 100 per cent. The Champions League, too. But if we knew in July that we’d be in this situation today, I don’t think we’d regard it as horrible. It’s just one we can and must improve on.”

There have been many reasons put forward as to why Conte’s side have not been as impressive as they were when winning the title last term. An underwhelming summer transfer window, injuries to key players, a more gruelling schedule due to the return of Champions League football are just three.

Fabregas thinks the explanation for their issues is a fairly simple one. “There is a need to be more consistent in our performances,” he said. “Everything started in pre-season, when we lost the Community Shield against Arsenal. We were winning, then Pedro was sent off and they scored from a set-piece.

“A week later, there was our first league game against Burnley, where until Gary Cahill was sent off I had a feeling that we would win that match for sure. Another league defeat came later on against Crystal Palace, where the team didn’t perform at the level that was required. But even then, I watched the highlights and we had so many opportunities.

“So, this is already two matches that you normally expect to win. That is six points we could have had if we had played better.”

But what of the most recent performance against Roma, where the defending was so awful?

“If you ask me about the first half, I would tell you we played well,” he said. “But we made two mistakes in important moments of the match and were 2-0 down at half-time. In the second half we were not good at all. We have to analyse why. As well as Roma played, I believe we can beat them when we are at the top of our game.

“We just have to make sure that games like the one against Crystal Palace, or in the second half against Roma, don’t happen again. If we lose, it should only be because the other team has really performed better than us and that we know we gave everything.”

Fabregas has had to do just that this term, due to injury problems suffered at various times by N’Golo Kante, Danny Drinkwater and Tiemoue Bakayoko. The former Barcelona star has missed only one game and there have been suggestions in some quarters that he is feeling the strain and should be rested this weekend.

“No, I am not feeling tired,” he said. “I have played a lot of football in my career and am used to this schedule. I have been doing it for 15 seasons now. Obviously, I don’t believe you can play every single game of the season. I’m just trying to do what the coach wants me to do and try to play my best.

“Sometimes I play better, sometimes not as good, but I always try to be professional and do what he wants me to do.”

Apart from Conte and Mourinho renewing their growing rivalry, there are many other sub-plots to the visit of United. For example, strikers Alvaro Morata and Romelu Lukaku could have been playing for United and Chelsea respectively, rather than the other way around, had there not been a major twist during the transfer window in July. Meanwhile, Nemanja Matic is returning to Stamford Bridge for the first time since his £40million transfer to Old Trafford — a switch in the closed season that pundits continue to question.

Fabregas was clearly not too keen to talk in detail about such factors and risk causing any form of distraction ahead of the Serbian’s return.

However, the significance of the occasion to Chelsea’s fortunes is not lost on him.

“There is no better way for us to start a new phase than having to play a big game,” concluded the Spain international. “We know we have to perform at the highest level. A game against Manchester United requires you to be at the very, very top.

“We know we are going to be under pressure in front of our fans, but in a good way. We don’t have to be afraid of the situation, we want to achieve the three points.”

Should Fabregas and Chelsea succeed, the misery of Roma will be forgotten.

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