Chelsea have broken their own record for the most Premier League goals conceded in a season following their humiliating 5-0 defeat at Arsenal.
Goals from Leandro Trossard, Ben White (two) and Kai Havertz (two) saw the Gunners move three points clear at the top of the table on Tuesday night.
But for the Blues, this was their 11th league defeat of the season and came just days after they were cruelly knocked out of the FA Cup semi-finals by Manchester City.
While much has been made of their misfiring attack, time and time again this campaign it has been their lacklustre defence that has let Mauricio Pochettino down and at the Emirates that was plain to see.
Moreover, the heavy defeat means Chelsea have now conceded 57 goals in the league this season – the most they’ve ever shipped in a single Premier League campaign – and they still have six games to play.
The most they had ever conceded was 55 which they did in 1994/95 (when there was 42 games not the usual 38) and in 1996/97.
In 2023/24, Chelsea have kept just six clean sheets and rank 13th for most goals conceded – only Brentford, Bournemouth, Nottingham Forest, West Ham, Burnley, Luton and Sheffield United have a worse defensive record.
Tuesday night’s result was also their worst ever loss to Arsenal in their 209 clashes.
After being told about this embarrassing statistic, Pochettino was asked in his post-match press conference whether he felt let down by his players.
‘No. There are different circumstances,’ he replied.