Pochettino eases the pressure

Mauricio Pochettino claimed Chelsea's response to successive Premier League defeats showed his team is in a "good way" as the Blues saw off struggling Sheffield United 2-0 on Saturday.

After losses to Manchester United and Everton turned the heat up on struggling Chelsea, Pochettino's side kept the critics at bay with a hard-fought success at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea was hardly in complete control against the Premier League's bottom club, but second-half goals from Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson sealed a much-needed victory.

"I think we talked a lot during the week after Everton about needing drastic change," Pochettino said.

"It was important to confirm that we are in a good way. The team in the first half was frustrated because we couldn't find a way past the low block of Sheffield United."

Chelsea's first goal in the 54th minute was well worked between Palmer and Raheem Sterling, whose low cross was converted with a composed finish by the former Manchester City forward.

Palmer turned creator seven minutes later as Jackson made it 2-0, lifting the ball into the box for Sterling and Conor Gallagher to attack. The ball was spilled by Blades goalkeeper Wes Foderingham and Palmer knocked it back to Jackson for 2-0.

Pochettino pointed to a change of position in the second half, swapping Palmer with Sterling to take up a more central role, as the key to the win.

"We didn't show the capacity to be flexible and it was easy for them to identify our position and to block us and make us put the ball in positions that were easy for them to stop," he said.

"The second half we were much better, we fixed things. The team started to find better possibilities to play, to link much better.

"Cole from the right, going into the space, started to link better with teammates and be the player that we want to use — a playmaker."

Pochettino swatted aside questions about his decision to drop Argentina midfielder Enzo Fernandez from his starting XI.

Gallagher and Moises Caicedo featured in central midfield instead of the World Cup winner.

"You only can play 11," he said. "It's a big competition, sometimes you need one profile or another and you choose the players.

"The combination between Caicedo and Gallagher, using Cole like a number 10, that was the possibility for the best combination."

Worrying scenes

Luton Town captain Tom Lockyer suffered a cardiac arrest that forced the abandonment of his team's Premier League match at Bournemouth on Saturday as Manchester City threw away a 2-0 lead against Crystal Palace.

Luton's game on England's south coast was halted midway through the second half with the score at 1-1 as defender Lockyer received medical treatment before he was carried off to applause. Later, fans who stayed on at Vitality Stadium chanted his name.

The Premier League confirmed the match had been abandoned and Luton later said the Wales international was in a stable condition in hospital.

"Our medical staff have confirmed that the Hatters captain suffered a cardiac arrest on the pitch, but was responsive by the time he was taken off on the stretcher," the club said in a statement.

"He received further treatment inside the stadium, for which we once again thank the medical teams from both sides. Tom was transferred to hospital, where we can reassure supporters that he is stable and currently undergoing further tests, with his family at his bedside."

The 29-year-old had heart surgery after collapsing during Luton's Championship playoff final win against Coventry City in late May.

He returned to action for the start of the new season and had made 15 appearances in all competitions before Saturday's match.

The Wales national team posted on X, formerly known as Twitter: "Our thoughts are with Tom Lockyer."

City slips up

The incident in Bournemouth overshadowed a dramatic game at the Etihad Stadium, where champion City was cruising toward victory before conceding two late goals.

Palace has been something of a bogey team for City boss Pep Guardiola since he arrived in England in 2016 — it is one of only three teams to have won at the Etihad more than once, along with Manchester United and Chelsea.

City, without injured top scorer Erling Haaland, enjoyed nearly three-quarters of possession in the first half but had only Jack Grealish's goal to show for its dominance.

The home side seemed destined to move within a point of Premier League leader Liverpool when Rico Lewis thumped the ball into the bottom left corner in the 54th minute.

But Palace scored against the run of play to give the south London side hope in the 76th minute. Jeffrey Schlupp shrugged off the attentions of the City defense and crossed for Jean-Philippe Mateta to poke home.

And the home fans watched in horror when referee Paul Tierney pointed to the penalty spot after Phil Foden fouled Mateta.

Michael Olise made no mistake, slotting home in the 95th minute to make it 2-2 and boos rang around the Etihad at the final whistle.

"It's not bad luck, it's deserved," an angry Guardiola told reporters after the game. "We gave away two points. When you give away this penalty, you deserve it. You see the chances we created and conceded, it's quite similar to all this season — but we are not able to close the games. That is the feeling."

City, who now heads to the Club World Cup in Saudi Arabia, has won just one of its past six Premier League games and risks falling off the pace.

"We had a good performance. We controlled the transitions really well and made a lot of set pieces but Crystal Palace's second goal cannot happen at this level," added Guardiola.

"We took bad decisions in the 18-yard box and we were punished."

Agencies