Pochettino Warns Chelsea Players Over Penalty Shenanigans
Mauricio Pochettino has warned his Chelsea players never to repeat the penalty farce that threatened to mar their 6-0 victory over Everton on Monday.
The Blues were at their clinical best against the Toffees at Stamford Bridge as Cole Palmer scored four times in addition to goals from Nicolas Jackson and Alfie Gilchrist.
At 4-0 Chelsea were awarded a penalty after Palmer was brought down in the box, leading to a scuffle between Jackson and Madueke over who should effect the spot kick.
Palmer eventually picked himself up to send Jordan Pickford the wrong way for his ninth successful spot kick of the season.
“The players know, the club knows that Palmer is the penalty-taker,” said Pochettino, who was visibly agitated during his post-match duties.
“I’m so, so upset about the situation. In every country people are watching the game and we cannot send this type of image.
“I want to apologise to our fans. Discipline is the most important thing for the team. It’s a collective sport. I’m not going to accept this type of behaviour. I’m going to be very strong. I promise it’s not going to happen again.
“We need to move on and talk about the game – 6-0 against a very good team like Everton, clean sheet, I think we should be happy, no?”
“We don’t talk about punishment,” said Pochettino. “It’s about learning. They are young guys. It was very good the reaction of Gallagher like a captain. But you cannot show that type of behaviour.
“The discipline is going to be stronger. If they behave like kids, it’s impossible. You cannot behave like kids. It’s a shame, it’s an unacceptable thing. We don’t deserve to be talking about this.”
