Chelsea interim coach Roberto Di Matteo has admitted that his side never got into their rhythm during Wednesday night's 2-0 defeat at home to Newcastle United.
Papiss Cisse scored two stunning goals for the visitors as the Blues' Champions League hopes were dealt a blow at Stamford Bridge.
"It was a difficult game for us tonight, especially in the first half, the tempo wasn't quite high enough for our play and they did well. Credit to Newcastle," Di Matteo told Sky Sports News.
"It's our sixth game in 17 days but we keep pushing. It just looked like we never got into our rhythm tonight."
Chelsea are now four points off a top-four spot with two games left to play.
