Mislav Orsic’s early goal stunned the 2021 Champions League winners at the Maksimir Stadium, with Tuchel admitting he “didn’t see” the result coming while also bemoaning his side’s “lack of determination” as they fell to a third straight away defeat. Chelsea have now conceded at least once in each of their last six games in all competitions, their joint longest run without a clean sheet since the German took over in January 2021. Picture: Mislav Orsic, left, scored the only goal of the game as Zagreb triumphed 1-0 over Chelsea “I’m angry with myself,” he said. “I’m angry with our performance. Not aggressive enough on the ball, not enough individually or enough as a team. “There are not many [of players are playing at the top of their game]. It is obvious that we are underperforming. It’s a lack of determination. Lack of hunger and tension. You can’t expect to win games. We are clearly nowhere near where we want to be. “I just know I need time to digest it and find solutions. It’s a story of the last few games – we start well. But then we lack accuracy. We lack the smell of blood. “It’s clearly my job to analyze it. Clearly we have to be a lot better. We’re not happy with our results. We’re not happy with our performances. I’m a bit surprised by that performance today. “I didn’t see it coming. I was obviously on the wrong film. I thought the last game helped us, we showed a reaction against West Ham. We trained well. I thought the team was prepared. “I didn’t see that coming, so I know I’m mad at myself. There’s no day off in the next few days, don’t worry. There can be no day off right now.”
Chelsea’s remaining Champions League fixtures
September 14: Red Bull Salzburg (H) – kick-off 20:00 October 5: Milan (H) – kick-off 20:00 October 11: Milan (A) – kick-off at 20.00 October 25: Red Bull Salzburg (A) – kick-off 5.45pm November 2: Dinamo Zagreb (H) – kick-off at 20.00
Zakaria could be more than just a Chelsea signing
Sky Sports’ Adam Bate… Chelsea’s deadline day signing of Denis Zakaria received relatively little attention. As a loan with an option, it’s low risk with low expectations – people remember Saul Niguez’s underwhelming season. But it would be a mistake to underestimate Zacharias. While this is likely to be a short-term solution for Chelsea before they pursue bigger targets in midfield next summer, those who have followed the player’s career closely will not be surprised if he can take this opportunity to impress in the Premier League. Zakaria’s progress has stalled, but the Swiss international is only 25. Before his short spell at Juventus, before his injuries at Borussia Mönchengladbach, he was one of the most promising talents in the middle of Europe. Liverpool have maintained interest this summer. Adam Owen was part of the coaching staff at Servette when Zakaria first broke through. “Even then he stood out,” Owen tells Sky Sports. “Kevin Cooper was the manager who gave him his debut at 17. He came in and that was it. He’s been in the team ever since.” Talent was hard to miss. “I think everyone knew that throughout the academy. The frustration initially was that he felt like he should have played even earlier than he did. We held him back just because the timing had to be right.”
