John Obi Mikel felt Chelsea paid the price for not converting their chances in their 3-2 defeat to Sunderland on Saturday.
Guus Hiddink’s men were 2-1 at the break but Sam Allardyce’s men scored twice in a three-minute second-half spell to silence the Blues at the Stadium of Light.
And the Nigerian blamed his side’s inability to convert their chances for their defeat despite a bright start.
“We started the game well and for the first 30 to 35 minutes we had control and we were playing well,” Mikel told club website.
“We were creating chances, moving the ball quickly and players wanted to get involved.
“In the second half, we came out and we wanted to carry on where left off but we didn’t kill the game when we had the chances to do it.
“Then Ivanovic went down, the referee didn’t blow the whistle, we stopped a little and they scored the second goal. From then, they had some momentum, they built on that and got the third goal.”
The Super Eagles skipper believes the Black Cats were helped by a sell-out crowd at the Stadium but remained swayed they should have won the game.
“Their fans were on top of them and supporting them, and rightly so because they have to save their Premier League status,” he continued.
“They came out to fight and play. But if we killed the game when we had the chances and opportunities I don’t think they would have come back into the game.”
