ROSENIOR DEFENDS CHELSEA GOALKEEPER AFTER COSTLY GAFE AGAINST PSG

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By: Balogun Ibrahim

Chelsea coach Liam Rosenior has defended goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen after the Danish keeper’s error contributed to a late collapse in a 5-2 loss to Paris Saint-Germain during the first leg of their Champions League Round of 16 tie on Wednesday.

“Players make mistakes, and Filip is certainly not the first. It’s part of football, though obviously it’s bitter,” Rosenior said, referring to Jorgensen’s poor pass that was intercepted and led to Vitinha scoring PSG’s third goal.

The goal came in the 74th minute, after Chelsea had twice fought back, with Malo Gusto and Enzo Fernandez responding to strikes from Bradley Barcola and Ousmane Dembele for the hosts.

Even after that, Joao Pedro was denied a third equaliser due to a tight offside call, before Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s late brace handed PSG a three-goal advantage heading into the return leg.

“It is a very disappointing result on an evening where, for much of the game, I was really happy with the performance,” Rosenior said.

“The last 15 to 20 minutes were chaotic in many ways, and that falls on me. Setbacks happen, but you have to stay calm in the moment—we didn’t, and we were punished by a very good team.

“It’s painful because for 70 minutes we were very much in the tie and in the game.”

The coach’s decision to start Jorgensen over Robert Sanchez will now come under scrutiny. The Dane was playing only his third Champions League game this season, having also started against Aston Villa in the Premier League last week.

“Both goalkeepers have different strengths. Rob is outstanding with crosses and an excellent shot-stopper,” Rosenior added.“I am focused on achieving success both in the short term and over the long term.”

“I believe Filip brings different strengths to the team, and one of those, which he demonstrated against Aston Villa, is composure in possession—a quality we lacked previously.

“Facing a high-pressing team like PSG, staying calm and playing through the initial press can create many opportunities, which we managed to do,” Rosenior said.

The coach admitted that his team had “kind of shot ourselves in the foot” but praised Jorgensen for taking responsibility for his error.

“The first thing is credit to him—he owned up to it in the dressing room,” Rosenior added.

“Mistakes happen—everyone makes them, and our job is to support each other,” Rosenior said.

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“We have a huge game in three days against Newcastle, and we want to see real reaction and resilience from the team in that match.”

While Chelsea prepare for the crucial Premier League clash before hosting PSG at Stamford Bridge next Tuesday, PSG have a weekend off after their Ligue 1 fixture against Nantes was postponed to allow for rest.

“We kept trying to play against a very physical and technically strong team,” PSG coach Luis Enrique said.

“We need to keep pushing and also take time to rest and prepare for the second leg.”

His team is still working to regain the form that brought them European success last season, though the Spaniard admits reaching that level again is challenging.

“There are constant comparisons with last year, but it’s impossible to maintain that standard,” he said.

“We are very resilient—that’s a word that defines our team—and we are very happy,” he added.

AFP