Potter insists his Chelsea 'can't feel sorry' for themselves after Villa defeat

Graham Potter has claimed that Chelsea 'can't feel sorry' for themselves after their 2-0 home defeat to Aston Villa.

The Blues boss watched on as his side were beaten by Unai Emery's visitors thanks to goals from Ollie Watkins and John McGinn either side of half-time.

Chelsea seemed to be on the ascension prior to the international break but this result has sent them back down to earth, as the visitors overtook them in the table.

Potter, who will be well aware of the mounting pressure in west London, remained defiant in his post-match interview and suggested they must 'do better'.

Speaking on Sky Sports, the Blues manager said: 'Well, in both boxes we were second best. The first goal for them is disappointing from our perspective, but there's a lot of good things in the game.

'We have to accept it [the result] and do better,' he said. 'We can't feel sorry for ourselves. We have a fantastic game on Tuesday [home to Liverpool] to put it right.'

The Blues will be Liverpool's second crunch match within an eight-day period, as the Reds fell to a 4-1 defeat to Manchester City on Saturday afternoon.

Chelsea fans will be hoping to see a strong showing from their side on the day, after the meagre performance against Emery's visitors at Stamford Bridge.

'If you look at the stats of the game it was a positive performance, but in terms of the scoreline it's not. We're all really disappointed,' Potter continued.

'Of course. We want to win our home games. There was a positivity about us. The boys gave everything they could.

'It wasn't for a lack of effort, but at the same time we need to manage the small moments better. So the scoreline tells the story.'

The Blues were somewhat lucky to walk away from the match with just two goals conceded, after the visitors passed up a number of chances in the first-half.

Watkins was presented with a brilliant opportunity which he dragged wide of the mark just minutes before opening the scoring in west London.

The England forward snuck behind the defence and looped the ball of Kepa Arrizabalaga to stun the home crowd.

And then, in the second-half, McGinn curled a long-range effort past the grasps of Chelsea's goalkeeper to double their advantage.

The result took Villa up to ninth place in the league and saw them leapfrog Potter's side, who remain in 11th.