Maurizio Sarri admits his brave Chelsea side were simply blown away by a Liverpool whirlwind.
But the Blues boss is adamant his team showed the spirit and fight that was missing just a few short months ago, to suggest they can close the gap on the Premier League leaders, and their title rivals Manchester City .
Chelsea played well in a fascinating contest, but couldn't live with the Reds as they produced two stunning goals in three minutes just after the interval...the second a world class strike from Mo Salah.
And the Italian boss said: “Our plan was to arrive in the last 25 minutes at 0-0, because of course they needed to win, and we knew we could find a lot of spaces then.
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“But they are such a difficult side to play against. You know they can approach the first 10 minutes of the half in a very strong way with great intensity. We came through that in the first half, but the second half we defended too low.”
Sarri though, believes his side are still showing massive signs of progress, from the team which looked directionless as they struggled to understand his system, just a couple of months ago.
“We stayed in the match where three months ago we wouldn't have been able to do that. So we are improving,” he said.
“It's very difficult because here in England, the standard is really high, to close the gap the on Manchester City and Liverpool it will be very, very difficult. But now we are really very close to the other teams.
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“I think it was a great game of football even though we lost. Liverpool are one of the great teams in Europe at this moment, but we stayed in the match until the end.”
Sarri also believes the title race will come down to one moment of fortune – good or bad – for either team.
“The title will probably depend on the ball hitting a post and going in, or staying out.
“It will be point by point and I am not sure who will win it, but I am sure at the end the difference will be one or two points, no more.”
