Champions League: Mourinho: Chelsea not good enough
CHELSEA 2 PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN 2
(After extra time. 3-3 on aggregate. Paris Saint-Germain won on away goals)
CHELSEA boss Jose Mourinho has demanded answers from his players and questioned their mental strength after crashing out of the Champions League on away goals to 10-man Paris Saint-Germain last night.
PSG played the final hour of normal time and the additional 30 minutes of a tempestuous clash a man light after enigmatic Sweden forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic saw red for a foul on Oscar.
Former Chelsea centre-half David Luiz sent the game into extra-time by cancelling out Gary Cahill’s opener before Thiago Silva made amends for conceding a penalty, which Eden Hazard converted, by heading PSG into the quarter-finals.
“I want to discuss with the players. I want to know their feelings. I want to know what they felt on the pitch. We must try to find conclusions about our performance. Our performance was not good enough,” said Mourinho.
“We had the game in our hands twice but the opponent was stronger than us. They coped better than us with the pressure of the game. We concede two goals that are difficult to accept.
“That’s my feeling [PSG coped better mentally]. We had a few individual performances that were not good enough but collectively they were better.
“After a bad result or bad match I do not kick tables and doors in the dressing room. It’s time to be calm and analyse as a team.”
Ibrahimovic was judged to have lunged recklessly at Oscar shortly after the half-hour mark, with a straight red the outcome. PSG had won four of their previous five Champions League matches having had a men sent off but after 15-goal Edinson Cavani struck a post, Cahill rifled home an 81st minute half-volley as Costa’s mis-kicked effort looped into his path.
But two nights after Danny Welbeck returned to haunt his former club, Luiz did likewise, powering home a near-post header off the underside of the bar to level the aggregate score.
The Blues regrouped and Hazard nonchalantly passed the ball past Salvatore Sirigu from the spot after Silva had inexplicably handled. Having seen an effort clawed away superbly by Courtois seconds earlier, Silva climbed above John Terry to guide a header over the Belgium stopper.