Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso revealed his pain after his side's defeat, which he described as "painful," away to arch-rival Arsenal in the London derby.
اضافة اعلان
Arsenal kept up their perfect start to the Premier League season, coming from behind against Chelsea to turn a 0-1 deficit into a valuable, deserved 2-1 win, in the standout fixture of the competition's third round.
Morgan Rogers put Chelsea ahead early, in the 2nd minute, but Havertz quickly leveled for Arsenal in the 25th minute, before his Norwegian teammate Martin Ødegaard added the Gunners' second goal in the 50th minute.
With this result, Arsenal moved up to 9 points, keeping a perfect record so far and sitting second, only on goal difference behind leaders Manchester City, who are level on points. Chelsea, suffering their first defeat of the season, remain on 6 points in fourth place.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Alonso said: "The loss is painful... it's painful because a defeat should be. It was a very exciting match, full of ups and downs. We had chances to score, especially in the first half. No one is happy with losing."
The Spanish coach added: "After we scored, we had to defend excessively for 15-20 minutes, and we struggled a bit to regain control. Then things improved a little."
He continued: "Overall, it was a match full of intensity and competitiveness. We could have handled the second goal we conceded early better. The players gave everything, and tried every way they could. The loss has to hurt."
Alonso, in his first season at Chelsea, noted: "It's about preparing in the best possible way to compete in the best possible way. We need to control the numerical superiority on the right side. That's the nature of the game. We'll keep going. This is only the third match, and it's going to be a long, tough journey."
On Chelsea's approach to corner kicks, Alonso said: "We make the decisions and take the initiative to attack. We want to be effective enough on set pieces, and sometimes we press high or sit deep. I think that's what we need to compete at every stage. Today we came here to compete in the best way possible, and now we need to keep it going."
Asked what he'd learned, the Chelsea coach revealed: "I've learned a lot about the game, about ourselves, about our performance, and about our start to the season. The players have this spirit, this desire to perform better match after match, to build something we believe in. So far, I'm happy. We want to win matches, that's our ultimate goal."
Asked whether he felt a shortage in midfield, Alonso said in closing: "We have to deal with injuries, the team is missing an injured player. The players who were with us gave their best. They gave everything they had."
Chelsea began their campaign this season with a 3-2 win away at Fulham, before beating visitors Brighton 4-3 in the second round.
Arteta Praises the Win
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, for his part, praised his team's valuable, deserved win over visiting arch-rivals Chelsea, settling the London derby in their favor.
Speaking to BBC's Match of the Day, Arteta said: "It wasn't a good start, but we definitely produced an incredible response. I enjoyed how we competed."
The Spanish coach added: "We took risks, and it was a really enjoyable match. They have a fantastic manager who's able to prepare them in the best possible way. With the quality they have, we felt they could create chances out of nothing at any moment. We managed to limit their threat. Overall, it was a great performance from us."
Arteta also spoke about Ødegaard, saying: "I think he's enjoying his football. His personal life is settled, he's always ready, he trains regularly, he has his own routine, and if he's smart, he can benefit a lot from his teammates. I think he was outstanding today."
On winning all three of the team's league matches so far while conceding just one goal, the Arsenal manager said: "We're very happy, and we need to keep raising our level of performance and keep striving to improve every time, because we still have a lot of room for improvement. We have to enjoy this win because it was an important one."
