Robert Sanchez admits he did something ‘horrible’ during Chelsea’s win over Tottenham

Who was your Man of the Match tonight?

Chelsea have climbed into eighth place largely thanks to Everton, Brighton and Brentford failing to win on the weekend. Bournemouth’s draw against Man City means Chelsea can no longer finish in sixth place.

That means any Champions League hope is over, but the Blues can still qualify for the Europa League with a seventh-placed finish. Robert Sanchez helped keep Tottenham at bay and spoke after the 2-1 victory.

Robert Sanchez admits he “hated” his save against Tottenham

With the scoreline still reading 0-0, Mathys Tel tried his luck from the edge of Chelsea’s area. Tel, who was a target for Chelsea before Tottenham signed him from Bayern Munich, saw his effort strike the post.

Indeed, replays showed Tel’s effort hit the post before Sanchez got a touch on it and the ball bounced to relative safety. Asked about his save on BBC Sport after the match, Sanchez says it was a “horrible” save.

“It was a horrible save, I hated it. It hit the post, it hit my hand. I’m very happy. The boys performed. A couple of changes from training, a couple of injuries. They performed, they were brilliant. Very happy.”

Robert Sanchez’s form improves but Chelsea lack clean sheet

It is interesting that since Liam Rosenior’s exit, Sanchez’s form has improved. Rosenior was once seen with his head in his hands after Sanchez made a mistake during Chelsea’s 2-1 defeat to Arsenal in the league.

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He was inch-perfect aganist Spurs.

It has been a tricky season for Sanchez, and if Filip Jorgensen had remained fit under Rosenior, there is no doubt that the Dane would be first choice. Yet since Rosenior’s exit, Sanchez seems like a different player.

His performances against Leeds and Man City in the FA Cup were excellent, and it is hard to pin any of the goals against Chelsea, since Rosenior’s sacking, on Sanchez. Chelsea still lack a clean sheet in the league.

A run of 15 Premier League games without a clean sheet is clearly something Alonso will have to fix. A list of six potential signings in goal has been compiled, including Jordan Pickford and Robin Roefs.

But if Xabi Alonso is watching, and he surely will have been on Tuesday night, then he will have been impressed by his fellow countryman’s efforts between the sticks. All eyes turn to Sunderland on Sunday.