Tired Chelsea will battle on, says boss

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Roberto Di Matteo admitted that fatigue was a factor in his team’s performance against Newcastle but promised they will be ready for Saturday’s FA Cup final.

Newcastle’s 2-0 win at Stamford Bridge was a major blow to Chelsea’s chances of finishing in the top four.

Reaching the finals of the FA Cup and Champions League has left the Blues facing a fixture pile-up, but interim boss Di Matteo is adamant they will pick themselves up for this weekend’s clash with Liverpool.

He said: “We’ve been pushing the players very hard and they’ve responded extremely well. We have to give credit to Newcastle, who played a good game.

“My players have given everything. The effort is there and we have asked them to push and push and push.

“We will regroup and pick them up. We have another big game on Saturday and we’re going to go again.”

Di Matteo is hoping to have defenders David Luiz and Gary Cahill available for the Wembley encounter.

Both players have been sidelined with injuries but have trained this week and will be assessed on Friday.

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