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2023/24 English Premier League
Matchday 23
Chelsea v Wolverhampton Wanderers
Stamford Bridge
London, England
Sunday, 4 February 2024
Kick-off is at 14h00
Chelsea will be looking to bounce back from their midweek disappointment when Wolves arrive at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, February 4.
The Blues were resoundly beaten 4-1 by
Premier League leaders Liverpool at Anfield on January 31 which halted a three-match winning streak and saw them drop back down to 10th position.
Mauricio Pochettino's side are just two points clear of Wanderers ahead of their clash with Manchester United on February 1 and could find themselves in 11th spot by the time the Black Country club visit West London.
Newcastle leapfrogged Chelsea, United (9th) and Brighton (8th) into seventh place courtesy of their 3-1 victory over Aston Villa at Villa Park on January 30 and there is just a three-point gap between the Magpies and Wolves.
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Gary O'Neil's side drew 0-0 with the Seagulls on January 22 to go four games unbeaten after they had recorded three wins on the spin against the Blues, Brentford and Everton prior to that.
Pochettino acknowledged the Reds were the better team on the night as they dominated in all areas of the pitch and made it difficult for his players to get going.
"It's not about finding excuses. I think the performance was worse from us," the Argentine said. "They deserved to win, they were better than us. Being honest we didn't perform in the way that we wanted to perform. They were better than us from the first action.
"It was so clear, they were more aggressive than us. For us it was difficult to connect and to play and always when we recovered the ball with our first or second touch we gave it away again so easily.
"They won all the duels, I just think they competed better. In all the areas they were better than us, that is why they won."
O'Neil has urged his players to kick on and focus on challenging higher up the table after building up some momentum at the turn of the year.
"I want the players to have a realistic view on where we are. Of course, the more games you win, the more you can start to look upwards," he said.
"We need to be driven by trying to be successful and a fear of failure. I was always that way as a player, where I didn't want to fail, and I want the lads to feel that. It can really drive energy and make you focus.
"It's important that we have a real understanding. We're in a middle spot at the moment, not too far away from either, and we need to knuckle down and keep pushing."
Chelsea v Wolverhampton Wanderers Head-to-Head
Matches - 5
Chelsea - 1
Wolves - 2
Draws - 2
Premier League Matchday 23 fixtures:
Saturday, February 3
12h30: Everton v Tottenham Hotspur
15h00: Brighton & Hove Albion v Crystal Palace
15h00: Burnley v Fulham
15h00: Newcastle United v Luton Town
17h30: Sheffield United v Aston Villa
Sunday, February 4
14h00: Bournemouth v Nottingham Forest
14h00: Chelsea v Wolverhampton Wanderers
14h00: Manchester United v West Ham United
16h30: Arsenal v Liverpool
Monday, February 5
20h00: Brentford v Manchester City
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