Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho defended new signing Asmir Begovic after his debut from hell which saw him concede 4 goals inside 45 minutes. The boss described the Bosnian as “tired”.

Chelsea lost the game 4-2 against New York Red Bulls and Begovic was introduced by Jose at half time to replace Courtois. With The Blues leading 1-0 at the time, they went on to lose 4-2.

Mourinho said:

“If we won 10-0 I would not be happy because it would mean it was too easy.”

“Begovic was not sharp, a consequence of being tired from training. In the next game against PSG he will start.”

Chelsea took the lead through Loic Remy’s strike, before being pegged back by a Castellanos equaliser. 16-year-old Tyler Adams put the hosts ahead in the second half before Sean Davis scored a brace to put the game beyond Chelsea. Eden Hazard did manage a goal, but the American side prevailed as winners.

It was the first game of Chelsea’s three-match North American tour, and not the start Mourinho would’ve hoped for especially as their opponents fielded a much weaker side than that which appears in the MLS.

“I was surprised by our fragilities,” said Mourinho.

“I was surprised that we were not good enough in the second half to cope with that.”

Chelsea continue their tour of the US when they play French champions PSG in North Carolina on Saturday. They then face Spanish champions Barcelona in Washington DC on 29th July. All this comes before their date with Arsenal at Wembley for the Community Shield.

[Quotes via BBC Sport]