"He has been caught trying to play perfect football" - Rio Ferdinand blames Chelsea star for panicking in 3-2 West Ham loss
Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has criticized Edouard Mendy for his error in Chelsea's defeat to West Ham.
The Blues fell to a 3-2 reverse at the London Stadium on Saturday (December 4) in the Premier League. Mendy was guilty of conceding a penalty, which was converted by Hammers midfielder Manuel Lanzini.
Chelsea took the lead against West Ham thanks to a header from Brazilian defender Thiago Silva. Mendy's error after Jorginho's faulty back-pass gave West Ham the opportunity to equalize from the penalty spot five minutes before half-time. Lanzini converted the spot-kick flawlessly.
But Chelsea took the lead once again just four minutes later when Mason Mount scored. West Ham equalized for a second time through Jarrod Bowen in the second half. Arthur Masuaku then scored via a deflected strike close to the end of regulation to win the game for the Hammers.
Speaking about West Ham's opening goal against Chelsea during the half-time break, Rio Ferdinand criticized Mendy. Ferdinand accused the Senegalese goalkeeper of "trying to play perfect football."
"He's had plenty of opportunity to clear this. Jorginho leaves the short pass, yes it is short, but the goalkeeper gets there. Clear it straight away. He gets another chance to clear it and takes another touch then all of a sudden its panic stations and he gives away a penalty," Ferdinand told BT Sport as per Metro.
He added:
"Instead of taking that touch, give a throw in away. The problem is he has been caught trying to play perfect football. In those situations, it's not about that."
Chelsea's 3-2 defeat to West Ham resulted in the Blues dropping down to third place in the Premier League table. Thomas Tuchel's side are currently two points behind leaders Liverpool and one behind second-placed Manchester City.
‘It’s not about that!’ – Rio Ferdinand accuses Edouard Mendy of trying to play ‘perfect football’ in lead up to West Ham error: metro.co.uk/2021/12/04/rio…
Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel needs to get the best out of Romelu Lukaku for the Blues to succeed this season
While Mendy's mistake certainly proved costly, Chelsea have bigger problems upfront after another tepid showing by Romelu Lukaku.
The Blues spent a club-record fee of £97.5 million to sign Lukaku from Inter Milan in the summer. The Belgian enjoyed an impressive start to life at Stamford Bridge, scoring four goals in his first four games for the club in all competitions.
Lukaku then missed four Premier League games due to an ankle sprain. The 28-year-old returned to action in the 1-1 draw with Manchester United. He has been used as a second-half substitute by Thomas Tuchel in Chelsea's last three league games.
Lukaku has scored just four goals and provided one assist in fourteen games for Chelsea in all competitions this season. Tuchel has arguably been unable to get the best out of the Belgian during the first half of the season.
Are Chelsea a better team with or without Romelu Lukaku? Here's what the stats say... trib.al/qkMHXxR
The former Manchester United star is widely considered to be one of the best strikers in the world. Lukaku played a pivotal role in leading Inter Milan to their first Scudetto in eleven years last season, scoring 24 goals in 36 Serie A games.
Chelsea signed Lukaku hoping the striker would become the club's talisman and lead the Blues to the Premier League title this season. However, that has not been the case so far and Tuchel must find a way to make use of Lukaku's abilities and get the best out of the striker.