Cesar Azpilicueta has defended Tammy Abraham and Mason Mount after they were criticised by Jose Mourinho in the aftermath of Chelsea’s 4-0 defeat to Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Frank Lampard’s reign as Chelsea boss got off to a poor start on Sunday as Marcus Rashford’s double, plus goals from Anthony Martial and Daniel James, sealed victory for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side.
After the match, Mourinho singled out Mount and Abraham for criticism and suggested Lampard should have suggested a side containing more experienced players.
But Azpilicueta has defended Lampard’s decision to place his faith in Chelsea’s young players.
‘If they are here it is because they deserve to be,’ said Azpilicueta.
‘They are fighting in every training session. We trust in them.
‘All the boys, they train to play for the Chelsea first team since they were young and now we have a massive opportunity to create a fantastic group, to learn from every game.
‘Obviously everyone would like to start in a better way but we have to face the reality and become stronger from it.’
Azpilicueta also insists Chelsea’s players are fully aware that they need to improve.
‘We know that Chelsea always fights for everything,’ he said.
‘When you don’t win, the questions around get more and more but we have to cope with it.
‘We know that playing for Chelsea requires your best effort in every game so we have to learn from the game.
‘We know that we can improve. We have to face it, take the responsibility and move forward.
‘We have a trophy to fight for on Wednesday against a good team and we have to be ready for it.’
