Chelsea suffered a humbling 0-3 defeat at the hands of Sheffield United on Saturday, but club boss Frank Lampard said his side is plugging the defensive holes being blamed for the team's recent disappointments.
The manager said that the problem was clear to him and that he was working to gain consistency in the area.
Lampard was referring to the weakness that according to pundits is pulling the Blues down. The loss to Sheffield pointed to the disturbing fact that Lampard's side has conceded 49 points to opponents the season – the highest of any club in the top 10 of the standings.
"Defensively, we have to absolutely focus on the games ahead," Goal reported the Chelsea manager as saying.
Lampard described the hammering by Sheffield as the worst of the season for Chelsea, further convincing him that consistency must be established within his side's back four.
The manager also made clear that the club hasn't been distracted by its recent high-profile signings. While there was excitement that Ajax playmaker Hakim Ziyech and RB Leipzig ace Timo Werner will soon be on board, Lampard insisted that the focus remains on winning the remaining games.
The beating by Sheffield pushed Chelsea down to No. 5 in the Premier League table, and a win by Manchester United in its next match would propel it into third. Chelsea, however, could climb back to No. 4 as the next assignment for the squad is newly relegated Norwich City.
Lampard's side is expected to win the game ,but that will depend if the team is indeed focused on the task at hand.
Chelsea, already gripped by the excitement of having Werner and Ziyech around next season, also seems likely to sign Bundesliga sensation Kai Havertz.
However, Metro reported that Havertz playing with Chelsea will greatly depend on the team's ability to qualify for the Champions League.
The report added that the German playmaker has already filed a transfer request as his club, Bayer Leverkusen, finished the Bundesliga season in fifth place, so there is no chance for him to play in the UCL. In joining a new side, the youngster's camp wants to make sure that the receiving club is a candidate to become the European champions next season.
This means that if Chelsea ended up outside of the Premier League Top 4, Havertz might opt to sign with a different club.
This new information came out as recent reports said Chelsea and Havertz have agreed on personal terms for the 21-year-old's transfer to Stamford Bridge, with the Blues all set to pay the Leverkusen star's price tag of £89.8 million.
