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Antonio Rudiger Insists 'Stupid' Chelsea Are Out of Premier League Title Race After Leicester Defeat
Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger has claimed that Chelsea are no longer in the Premier League title race following their shock 1-0 defeat to Leicester City on Saturday.
Liverpool's 2-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers on Friday meant Chelsea began the game 11 points behind the Reds, who are yet to taste defeat in the league. After suffering defeat to Wolves in early December, Chelsea bounced back with a superb 2-0 victory over Manchester City, and many claimed that Chelsea had reestablished themselves in the title race.
A frustrating afternoon at the Bridge ends in defeat for the Blues...#CHELEI pic.twitter.com/NKFkyHgEfI
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) December 22, 2018
However, defeat to Leicester meant Chelsea remained 11 points behind the league leaders, and Rudiger told the BBC that his side are now out of the title race. He said: "For us, in our situation in the table, it's a disaster.
"The title race? We don't need to speak about it anymore, it's just about going to the Champions League or not.
"With all respect, if we cannot win these kind of games, we cannot compete.
"It's simple. These teams, they know how to fight and they are killers. One chance, one goal today. Against Wolves, two chances and two goals. It's simple."
When asked how the Blues could beat City but suffer defeats to both Wolves and Leicester, Rudiger responded: "It's a good question. Maybe it's a lack of mentality. I don't know.
"Not clinical enough, and stupid.
"I think we need to continue, but we just have to think about what happened today and tomorrow move on."
Chelsea will close out 2018 with matches against Watford and Crystal Palace, and they will be desperate to prove that they can still compete for the league title. The Blues will certainly be watching as Liverpool travel to face City in early January and they will be keen to recover some ground on the league leaders.
