Graham Potter has warned Manchester United ahead of the Premier League meeting on Saturday that Chelsea won’t stop pushing despite dropping points against Brentford.
Chelsea maintained their unbeaten start under Potter by extending the run to seven games (W5, D2) following a 0-0 draw against Brentford at the Gtech Community Stadium on Wednesday evening.
They had to dig in and rely on goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga to produce some excellent saves once again, continuing his fine form, to ensure they preserved their clean sheet record - five in a row - to avoid defeat in the west London derby.
Man United came out 2-0 winners against Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford, arguably their most complete performance since Ten Hag was appointed in the summer.
There is now one point separating the sides heading into Saturday's showdown in the capital. Chelsea are in fourth on 20 points, while Man United are one point behind in fifth.
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Chelsea will have Thursday and Friday to prepare for Saturday evening’s game which doesn’t leave much time for Potter to get to work on the training ground with his players.
He knows this and accepts that recovery is important, but warns Chelsea will not stop pushing to their limit despite the busy fixture schedule which faces the Blues ahead of the World Cup break next month.
"There is no rest, you have to keep moving,” Potter told Amazon Prime ahead of Man United’s visit to Stamford Bridge this weekend.
“Four points (from the last two away games) which is not too bad. We wanted to win but we have to credit our opponent, take the point and go again (on Saturday)."
The 47-year-old knows the most important element of preparation for the clash against Erik ten Hag’s side is recovery before Saturday, also asking for the backing of the fans to spur the team onto victory.
Speaking to Chelsea TV, he added: “Recovery is now the aim of the game now for the boys.
“It’s been a tough week, two away matches, so we need to recover and be ready for the game, a fantastic game for us: home, looking forward to seeing our supporters, we need their help because we’ve had a big week and we need to push to perform well and hopefully get the three points.”
Trevoh Chalobah, who was lauded by Potter for his ‘soldier’ like performance against Brentford, also shared the views of the Chelsea head coach ahead of playing Man United.
He added: “With a lot of games coming thick and fast, recovery is important as the manager said.
“Our recovery over the next few days is going to be very important. Another big one again.”
Topics: Graham Potter, Manchester United, Premier League, Chelsea, Football
Matthew Debono