Ashley Cole, the former Chelsea left-back, has criticized manager Mauricio Pochettino for making a crucial substitution error during Chelsea’s 3-1 defeat against West Ham United in the Premier League on Sunday.
In the first half, Chelsea midfielder Carney Chukwuemeka scored his first senior goal to equalize after Nayef Aguerd had opened the scoring for West Ham.
During half-time, Pochettino decided to substitute Chukwuemeka and brought on Ukrainian player Mykhailo Mudryk.
However, Cole disagreed with Pochettino’s decision, stating, “Maybe the substitution [taking off Carney and bringing on Mykhailo] caused a problem. Chelsea lost momentum in the game. The runs between the right-back and centre-back were no longer happening, making it too easy for West Ham,” as he expressed to Sky Sports.
Cole added, “Pochettino might have had a reason for the change, but I believe they lost the ability to push forward and trouble West Ham.”
The result against West Ham means that Chelsea now only have one point from two matches.
