Liam Rosenior says Chelsea marked wrong player for Burnley equaliser

Chelsea head coach Liam Rosenior revealed Zian Flemming’s late equaliser for Burnley in Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge was the result of one of his players marking the wrong man.

An unmarked Flemming, 27, nodded in an inviting James Ward-Prowse corner kick delivery in the 93rd minute to snatch a point for Burnley after Joao Pedro had struck early to break the deadlock for Chelsea, who then had Wesley Fofana sent off in the 72nd minute.

Rosenior did not identify the player at fault in his post-match press conference, but confirmed that Flemming had capitalised on a botched marking assignment.

“An assignment was missed,” Rosenior said. “An assignment, a marking assignment, wasn’t done. Flemming, we know, is their best header of the ball. And there was a player who I won’t (name). I’m not here to throw players under the bus. I will always protect my players, and I will deal with it in the week. There was a player we assigned that duty (and he) marked the wrong player.

“We knew their biggest threat with (James) Ward-Prowse on the pitch was set plays. We went as big as we possibly could because that was the only way they could score with 10 men. We still don’t see it out.

“I think the frustration is more (with) the last two home games. From being in winning positions and being in control of the game to not win the two games, that’s the biggest frustration.”

Chelsea have dropped 19 points from winning positions in the Premier League this season, of which 17 have been lost at Stamford Bridge. The problem has been magnified by surrendered leads in back-to-back home league games against Leeds United and Burnley, and Rosenior made no attempt to hide his frustration.

“I will never, ever speak about what’s happened before me,” he added. “What has happened with me is we have set fire to four points from two home games. Anyone watching the game, it’s not good enough for a club of this level. It’s not good enough for me to come and say we were the better team. We need to be the better team in every game.

“We need to win games of football. I know what the answer is and we will address it in the week. There’s an inquest after every game, whether we win or lose. I’m learning about the players.

“I’m learning about the people you can lean on when things aren’t going your way and you need to see a game out. That’s something we need to address very quickly.”

Chelsea, fourth in the Premier League and level on points with fifth-place Manchester United (45), remain in the hunt to secure Champions League qualification.

The west London side have a tough run of fixtures on the horizon, with a trip to Arsenal (March 1) and a trip to Villa Park (March 4) being their next two Premier League outings.

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