Reece James gives honest ‘disrespected’ Chelsea verdict after Stamford Bridge shock

Chelsea captain Reece James has admitted that his side maybe ‘disrespected’ the UEFA Conference League following their 2-1 loss against Legia Warsaw on Thursday night.

Goals from Tomas Pekhart and Steve Kapuadi in either half cancelled out Marc Cucurella’s first half goal. Despite the defeat on the night, a 3-0 victory in the first leg a week earlier meant that Chelsea progressed 4-2 on aggregate.

Although they booked their place in the semi-final of the competition, where they will play Swedish side Djurgarden, James outlined the feeling in the dressing room after the full time whistle.

”Disappointment,” he told TNT Sports. “Its a game we should have won. We advanced, we qualify, but it was a poor performance from the team today.

“It’s hard to put it down to one thing. We had a 3-0 lead, maybe that played a part in taking our foot off the gas. But we have no excuses.”

He added: “For sure we are making progress. Today was not progress. If anything a step back. Maybe we disrespected the competition today. But this is football. If you don’t prepare right, you will pay.

“It’s going to affect the mindset. It’s going to be in the back of people’s heads. We lost when we shouldn’t have lost. We need to put it behind us. Sunday is must win.”

The full time whistle was greeted with some boos from the fans around Stamford Bridge with supporters letting their frustration known. James gave his response to the reaction.

“I understand the frustration to be honest. Fans come to games to see excitement, goals. Today we were frustrating to watch. We remain focused. We still stick together. We look forward to achieving what we want together.”

Chelsea don’t have too long to dwell on the result with the race for Champions League football next season reaching its conclusion. The Blues currently sit in sixth, one place outside of the qualifying spots by just one point.

Enzo Maresca’s side take n Fulham at Craven Cottage on Sunday afternoon (2pm kick-off) as they look to climb back into the top five positions. Their last Premier League outing saw them come from 2-0 down against Ipswich Town to draw 2-2.

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