Graham Potter urged Chelsea to not "wait around for luck" but hailed a "dominant" performance despite a slender defeat at Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League last 16.
Karim Adeyemi's third goal in as many games for Dortmund in all competitions, one more than in his previous 20 appearances, proved the difference in a narrow 1-0 win at Signal Iduna Park on Wednesday.
Chelsea should have arguably been out of sight before Adeyemi's 63rd-minute strike, with Joao Felix squandering a pair of glorious first-half opportunities in an entertaining encounter.
Gregor Kobel had a fine game in goal for Edin Terzic's side too, and Potter appeared far from worried after an encouraging display ahead of the return meeting at Stamford Bridge on March 7.
The Chelsea head coach told BT Sport: "I thought we were the dominant team in the second half.
"It is half-time in the tie, we have to regroup. You can see the supporters' reaction, they were really positive, they can see the performance of the team, they gave us a fantastic reception.
"We are a team in progress, we know there are a lot of positive things there.
"You always need a bit of luck but you can't wait around for luck, you have to keep working.
"The boys have been fantastic with their work but we are still suffering at the moment. But we will keep on working."
Visiting Chelsea had 21 shots to their hosts' 14, with six more on target than Dortmund's two, as the Blues dominated without reward in Germany.
Potter's side amassed an expected goals tally of 2.14 to the 1.41 of Terzic's men as well, although all that mattered was Adeyemi's brilliant finish after a roaring counter-attack from a Chelsea corner.
Struggles in front of goal are not a new problem for Potter, with Chelsea managing just four goals in nine matches in all competitions and failing to score in five of those games.
The Blues have drawn a blank in more outings in 2023 than any other Premier League club, yet Potter was pleased with what he saw – apart from Adeyemi's ruthless finish.
"It was a very strong performance, especially the second half," he added. "We created a lot of chances and efforts on goal but I am disappointed with the goal we conceded.
"It is a counter-attack from a corner, we were close to scoring ourselves. They broke on us. It is disappointing, we need to do better.
"Apart from that, we were really, really good, we just have to score. We had good attacking movements, clarity in terms of how we wanted to attack and got into the right areas. The attitude was really positive as well."
Tottenham 2-3 Arsenal: Gunners hold off late fightback to boost title hopes
Arsenal survived a late scare to move four points clear at the Premier League summit following a 3-2 win at rivals Tottenham in Sunday's north London derby.
The Gunners cruised into a 3-0 half-time lead thanks to an own goal from Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg along with Bukayo Saka's strike and Kai Havertz's header.
Yet a second-half collapse looked to be on the cards when Cristian Romero punished David Raya’s error before Son Heung-min pulled another back from the spot. However, the Gunners ultimately held on.
Arsenal, at least temporarily, tightened their grip on top spot ahead of second-placed Manchester City, who play the first of their two games in hand against Nottingham Forest later on Sunday, while Tottenham remain seven points off the top four in fifth.
The Gunners broke through after 15 minutes when Hojbjerg inadvertently nodded Saka’s inswinging corner beyond Guglielmo Vicario at his near post.
Spurs responded, and after Romero headed against the post, Micky van de Ven thought he had levelled when he slotted home from close range. However, the decision to award the goal was overturned following a VAR review with the defender adjudged to be offside.
Arsenal doubled their lead in the 27th minute following a swift counter that saw Havertz pick out Saka, who cut inside before slotting past Vicario.
Havertz then got in on the act before half-time, heading home Declan Rice’s corner from inside the six-yard box.
Yet an error by Raya gifted Spurs a lifeline after the break, when Romero pounced on the goalkeeper’s poor clearance to reduce the hosts’ arrears.
Matters were made more fraught for the Gunners late on, when a VAR check confirmed a penalty should be awarded to Spurs for Rice’s foul on Ben Davies.
Son lashed a brilliant spot-kick into the left-hand corner, yet a late Spurs onslaught ultimately came to nothing, as the Gunners secured another big win.
Saka shines in the derby limelight
The destiny of the Premier League title may be in Man City’s hands, but Arsenal are still very much in the hunt after a second London derby victory this week.
Mikel Arteta’s side, who thumped Chelsea 5-0 on Tuesday, have bounced back brilliantly from their defeat to Aston Villa two weeks ago, scoring 10 goals in three games while conceding just twice.
After his corner led to the opening goal, Saka doubled the lead with his 15th league strike of this term – his most in a single season – while he became the first English player to score home and away for Arsenal against Tottenham in a single campaign since Ian Wright 30 years ago (1993-94).
The damage was effectively done when Havertz headed in the Gunners’ 16th goal from a corner this season, the most in a single campaign since West Bromwich Albion in 2016-17 (also 16), though Arteta will have been concerned by their near slip at the end.
Spurs' struggles on home soil continue
The 195th north London derby culminated in Tottenham losing successive home league games against Arsenal for the first time since 1988.
Despite their best efforts in the second half, it was always going to be difficult to turn things around against the side that has now won all 16 matches when leading at half-time this season.
Now without a win in four meetings against their rivals, they have also tasted success just once in five home outings against the Gunners.
With their own title hopes undented by their rivals, Arsenal will hope Tottenham can instead harm City’s chances when they host them on May 14.
Bournemouth 3-0 Brighton: Unal stars as Cherries continue upward surge
Enes Unal played a crucial role on his full Premier League debut as Bournemouth saw off Brighton 3-0 at the Vitality Stadium.
Having teed up Marcos Senesi’s early opener – the defender’s fourth goal of the season – Unal sent a bullet header into the top-left corner after the break to double Bournemouth’s advantage in Sunday’s south coast derby.
The introduction of Julio Enciso from the bench in the second half saw Roberto De Zerbi’s Brighton enjoy more spark in the final third, but the result was put beyond all doubt when Justin Kluivert slammed home late on.
Tenth-placed Bournemouth are now four points clear of Brighton and with Chelsea above them, with their hopes of European football still intact.
The Cherries started brightly, with Unal bursting down the right-hand side before looking to find fellow centre-forward Dominic Solanke, but a goal-saving challenge from Lewis Dunk prevented a certain opener.
Bournemouth kept up the pressure and opened the scoring after just 13 minutes as Senesi pounced in the box from a corner to nod home from just a few yards out after Unal had won the flick-on at the near post.
Brighton grew into it after going behind and had an excellent chance to find an equaliser as Facundo Buonanotte danced through the challenges of the opposition defence inside the box, only to fail to beat Mark Travers.
Andoni Iraola’s side should have made it two after Alex Scott dispossessed Igor Julio before pulling it back to Unal, but the Turkish striker dragged his effort wide from just inside the penalty area.
Just a few minutes after the break, the Cherries could have doubled their lead as Kluivert burst into the box with Antoine Semenyo waiting unmarked at the back post, but the Dutch forward opted to shoot from a tight angle and could only find the side netting.
Their second did arrive in the 52nd minute – Unal marking his first league start in style when he powered in a header after meeting Dango Ouattara’s floated cross to the back post.
Enciso twice went close as Brighton searched for a way back into the contest, striking off target from the edge of the box before sending a stunning attempt just wide.
Kluivert added further gloss to Bournemouth’s victory, however, driving in from the right and lashing in with his left foot to wrap up a comprehensive triumph.
Iraola’s European hopes firmly alive
The Cherries have now extended their unbeaten run at home to six games in the Premier League, with the Vitality Stadium becoming a bit of a fortress in recent months.
Bournemouth, who have now achieved their record points tally in the Premier League (48), are in with an outside chance of qualifying for Europe, with Andoni Iraola’s men moving back into the top half of table, just six points behind Manchester United in sixth.
Unal’s goal and assist might give Iraola something to think about in terms of team selection, too, as the Bournemouth boss looks to finish his maiden season in the competition on a high note, though a late injury for Semenyo, who had to be taken off on a stretcher, will perhaps dampen the mood somewhat.
De Zerbi’s debutants fail to deliver
De Zerbi handed full Premier League debuts to Mark O’Mahony and Odeluga Offiah, making seven changes overall as the Seagulls looked to bounce back from their heavy defeat to Manchester City last time out.
However, those alterations did not have the desired impact, and it is now just two wins from their last 16 Premier League games for the Seagulls, with De Zerbi’s side only beating Nottingham Forest and Sheffield United on the road this season.
Brighton have secured just two points from a possible 21 available in their previous seven fixtures, and a second season in Europe is surely beyond them now.
Everton Women 1-1 Arsenal Women: Hobson breaks WSL record to all but end Gunners' title hopes
Isabella Hobson came on from the bench to score a record-breaking goal as Everton Women drew 1-1 with Arsenal Women in the WSL.
Arsenal had been hoping to move level on points with second-place Chelsea on Sunday, and were on course to do just that when Alessia Russo scored from close range in the 80th minute.
That opener came after a glut of missed chances from the visitors, who were wasteful throughout at Walton Hall Park.
Russo should have put the game to bed in the third minute of stoppage time, only to blaze over with the goal gaping, and the Gunners were subsequently made to pay.
Arsenal failed to clear their lines from a corner, with Hobson able to rise up and plant a brilliant header into the back of the net, with the 16-year-old becoming the youngest-ever WSL goalscorer in the process.
The draw leaves Arsenal in third on 44 points, meaning their title hopes will be ended should Manchester City beat Bristol City later on Sunday.
Data Debrief: History for Hobson
Everton hero Hobson is the team's youngest goalscorer in 14 years, as the Toffees claimed their first WSL point against Arsenal since 2012.
Arsenal have scored in their last 10 games in the WSL, their longest run of games with a goal in the competition since a run of 18 last season, but the Gunners could not keep things tight at the back and ultimately paid the price.
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