Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti says he is not worried despite missing out on reclaiming top spot in the Premier League after a 1-1 draw at Newcastle.

The Blues came from behind to seal a point at St James' Park on Sunday, but are now second, two points behind leaders Manchester United.

"Now we are not at the top of the table but there is time to come back. We have to keep going," said Ancelotti.

"We don't have to complain or be worried because our play is good."

Ancelotti's side have now taken only four points of the last 15 available to them in the Premier League.

After a disappointing first half against Newcastle, the Blues created a number of chances after the break as they sought to claim the three points that would restore them as league leaders, but were unable to make the breakthrough.

We knew we had to dig in and got to a stage where, if you can ever be a little bit comfortable against the quality they have, we ended up being a touch comfortable Chris Hughton

Ancelotti praised the display of his side, but admitted they need to show more composure in front of goal. His side have only scored three times in their last five Premier League games - a far cry from the start of the season when, from their opening five fixtures, they scored 21 times.

"In the second we did everything to try to win," he said. "The performance was good but the result wasn't.

"Now we have to stay more in focus to convert the chances we are creating during games."

It was a far cry from their first-half display, which saw them concede after five minutes when Alex's misjudged back-pass beat goalkeeper Petr Cech and gave Andy Carroll the simplest of finishes.

They then struggled to fashion opportunities until Salomon Kalou's deflected goal in the 44th-minute.

"Obviously we didn't want to start the game as we did because we made a mistake and conceded an easy goal," admitted Ancelotti. "After that the game was more difficult.

"But we had a good reaction and drew level at the end of the first half."

While Chelsea retain the best defensive record in the Premier League, having kept eight clean sheets, Alex's blunder is further proof of some frailty in the Blues, who also conceded three goals at home to Sunderland in a 3-0 defeat on 14 November.

606: DEBATE I know we drew which isn't happy days, but in the whole match we were dominant, it was the same against Birmingham Jonathan Nice

However, Ancelotti dismissed any suggestions of a significant problem, saying: "It was a lack of communication between Petr and Alex, which sometimes can happen."

Newcastle boss Chris Hughton admitted his side were under pressure in the second half, but was pleased with their efforts.

"They had the ascendancy but credit to every one of our players," Newcastle manager Chris Hughton told Sky Sports.

"We knew we had to dig in and got to a stage where, if you can ever be a little bit comfortable against the quality they have, we ended up being a touch comfortable."

The point lifted Newcastle up to ninth in the table and is a positive comeback for the side following their 5-1 hammering at Bolton last weekend.

E-mail this to a friend

Printable version