“I’m tired of the way things are going. I have complained about him to our coach but he has refused to bench him. He’s disturbing the chemistry of our team” – This is according to Chelsea Captain Reece James he calls out one of his Chelsea teammates over concerning habit that the squad “must stop”

Reece James has admitted that both he and his Chelsea teammates must take responsibility after dropping points against Qarabag in the UEFA Champions League.

The Blues captain expressed frustration over the team’s defensive lapses in the 2-2 draw at the Tofiq Bahramov Stadium, which left Chelsea sitting 12th in the group standings.

Estevao Willian gave the visitors an early lead, but goals from Leandro Andrade and Marko Jankovic—following a penalty for handball against Jorrel Hato—turned the game in Qarabag’s favour before Alejandro Garnacho equalised shortly after half-time. Despite late pressure, Chelsea couldn’t find a winner.

Speaking to TNT Sports after the match, James described the result as “disappointing,” admitting that unforced errors cost his team dearly. “We set up well and started strong, but two mistakes led to two goals we gifted them,” he said. “It’s hard to recover after that. We only have ourselves to blame.”

He also pointed out that most of Chelsea’s goals conceded this season have come from self-inflicted errors rather than opposition brilliance. “If you look back, the goals we’ve given away are not from great play — they’re from our mistakes, and that’s something we need to cut out,” James added.

Despite the result, he praised Estevao, who was named man of the match. “He’s an amazing talent with a huge future. He’s still young, so we need to protect him and help him develop. We’re really happy to have him.”

Manager Enzo Maresca echoed his captain’s remarks, emphasising that the team must be more clinical in attack and avoid careless defending. “We started well, scored first, but conceded two preventable goals,” Maresca said. “In their box, we weren’t sharp enough, and in ours, we gave too much away. That’s the key difference.”