21 August 2023 , 18:38
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Moises Caicedo has vowed to help Chelsea bounce back following his calamitous debut at West Ham on Sunday.
The Ecuador international, 21, became the most expensive footballer in British history last week when he completed a blockbuster £115million transfer from Brighton. But unfortunately for the midfielder, his first appearance in a Chelsea shirt didn't go to plan.
Caicedo looked alarmingly off the pace after being introduced from the bench by Mauricio Pochettino on the hour mark at the London Stadium. The Blues were 2-1 down at the time, with West Ham adding a killer third after Caicedo clumsily gave away a penalty in additional time.
The former Seagulls star seemed downbeat at the final whistle and was criticised by pundits after the match, but he held his hands up in a social media post thanking fans for their support.
In a post on his Instagram account, Caicedo admitted: “It wasn’t the debut that I expected. But I’m happy to get my first minutes with this big club. We’ll keep working hard to put this team where it deserves. Thanks to the fans who are supporting me”.
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Caicedo's post came shortly after Sky Sports analyst Jamie Carragher branded the midfielder's debut a "nightmare". The Liverpool icon, who was commentating on the match, said after the late penalty: “That man Caicedo has had a bit of a nightmare since he came on, you have to say.
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Mauricio Pochettino admitted Caicedo would probably be "disappointed" following his cameo against West Ham (Matt Impey/REX/Shutterstock)“It’s a poor, lazy challenge. Emerson always knows he’ll get there before him. We all did watching it! He hasn’t started great since coming on.”
Speaking after the match, Pochettino conceded that Caicedo would perhaps be "disappointed" with his cameo after giving away a penalty as the Blues chased the game late in the day, but the former Tottenham chief backed the midfielder to rebound and show his quality in the coming weeks.
When he was asked about Caicedo, Pochettino admitted: “He was telling us he was ready, I think 30 minutes is good for him, many positive things and he is maybe disappointed but we need to move on and he will be a good player for us.
“I cannot change my speech after Liverpool – we need to believe in the process and we need to keep being calm, and that is the process.”