Chelsea defender Marc Cucurella says the Blues must learn to control games better after losing to Flamengo in the Club World Cup.
The Premier League side looked on course to win their second game in a row after Pedro Neto scored early on, but a disastrous second-half saw Enzo Maresca’s side unravel.
Flamengo scored twice before substitute Nicolas Jackson was sent off, putting the game beyond Chelsea’s reach.
It means the Blues must win their final game of the group stage against Esperance if they are to make it into the knockouts.
Speaking to DAZN after the match, Cucurella said: “For the majority we controlled the game well. When we conceded the first goal I think they had this good feeling because their fans started to be loud, and immediately after we conceded the second one. This is a thing that we have to improve.
“We need to control the game more, suffer in some moments but the most important thing is that we have another game and if we win we go through and that’s it.
Flamengo STUNS Chelsea!! 😳
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“We can have the ball more. It’s true that we tried to play more direct and did not have enough patience with the ball, that is something we can improve a lot.
“Now we have time to see the clips of the things we can do better in the next game.”
On Jackson’s red card, Cucurella added: “It is a bit of bad luck. He tried to put his foot in to kick the ball but he kicked the player’s leg. That’s it.
“We now miss him for the next game. He is a young player with a lot of quality and maybe he needs to improve this. We are not perfect, it’s part of the game.”