Chelsea 1 West Brom 0: Reception from crowd was good, says Benítez
Chelsea 1 West Brom 0: "You can see today the fans were behind the team," says Rafael Benítez after Demba Ba nets the winner
Rafael Benítez described his reception at Stamford Bridge as “quite good” after watching his Chelsea side move back into third place with victory over West Bromwich.
The Spaniard’s fragile relationship with Chelsea supporters appeared to be at breaking point after his midweek rant at the Riverside Stadium.
But the atmosphere at Stamford Bridge was relatively calm and Demba Ba’s 28th-minute goal gave the Blues a deserved win over the visitors.
“There were a lot of positives,” said the Chelsea interim boss after the game. “The reception from the crowd was quite good. I wanted everybody to stick together.
“I’m pleased. We could have scored three or four. It’s a pity we couldn’t score three or more goals.
“You can see today the fans were behind the team.”
Chelsea are now a point ahead of fourth-placed Tottenham, who host Arsenal on Sunday, and Benítez knows there is little room for error as the race for Champions League qualification hots up.
He added: “Every game will be important from now. It’s an important game tomorrow [Tottenham v Arsenal].”
