Chelsea 0 Manchester City 3 reaction: Guus Hiddink admits visitors ‘deserved’ win, but says Blues were not outplayed
Dutchman also refuses to speculate when asked what changes incoming manager Antonio Conte must make at Stamford Bridge ahead of next season
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Chelsea manager Guus Hiddink did not believe the Blues were outplayed by Manchester City and refused to give his assessment on what incoming manager Antonio Conte must do to improve the squad next season.
The home side had slightly more possession and had the ball in City's final third more than their opponents, but fell straight into visiting manager Manuel Pellegrini's planned counter-attacking trap. It took just three minutes for the adventurous Baba Rahman to be caught high up the pitch as City sprung lightning quick breaks time and again, with all three goals coming just seconds after Chelsea had lost possession in their attacking half.
Chelsea have now only won one game from their last seven and Hiddink conceded that Manchester City "deserved" their win, although he didn't believe the Blues were outplayed or that his side lacked fight.
"We weren't outplayed," he said. "But it was a big, big difference. The defeat is high, but deserved." The Dutchman added: "There was no lack of fight, but it's difficult to fight when they play around you."
Hiddink was also asked his opinion on where Chelsea should go next season. In recent weeks it has become increasingly clear that players and supporters of the club are just desperate for a nightmare season to come to an end.
The interim manager refused to be drawn on the question. "I am one of the few who must not start speculating. It is not up to me to put my footprint [on the future of the squad] publicly."
After the performance of Kevin De Bruyne, the former Chelsea reject bought for £55million in the summer by City, Hiddink said that it was easy to say the decision to sell him was a mistake with hindsight.
"It's always easy to give analysis about that [in hindsight]," he said. The awareness, you have to take into consideration why that was decision made at that time. [Was it] the competition in the team, were there three or four players in one position? But he has developed himself well... He’s a beautiful player to see."
Pellegrini had earlier said he was delighted with the way his team had perfomed during an impressive win.
"A great victory, a very good performance," said the Chilean. "It was important not just to win, but to win playing the game."
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments