Chelsea Under-21s had to settle for just the one point in our final group game of this season’s Premier League International Cup, with head coach Mark Robinson believing our decision making has left qualification for the knockout rounds hanging in the balance.

The report

A victory over Valencia would have almost guaranteed our spot in the quarter-finals, but it was not to be. We still have a chance to progress after this point moved us up to third in our eight-team group, but must wait and hope results elsewhere go in our favour, with only two of the three third-placed sides going through.

However, at least for now, our matches in the Premier League International Cup are over as we completed the group stage with a draw against Valencia at Kingsmeadow. It was a game of few chances, although Chelsea were on top for the vast majority of it.

When we took the lead shortly before half-time it was a deserved one. It came following a good move from the Blues, Samuel Rak-Sakyi showing great feet to turn into space before Jimmy-Jay Morgan found Zain Silcott-Duberry with room to run into on the right.

As Silcott-Duberry charged into the box at pace, he was clipped and brought down. The referee pointed straight to the spot, allowing Morgan to step up and send the keeper the wrong way as he tucked the penalty confidently into the bottom-left corner.

Valencia levelled the scores soon after the break, though, and it was a disappointing goal to concede from a Chelsea point of view. We played ourselves into trouble at the back, giving Rodrigo Farofa the chance to anticipate Rak-Sakyi’s pass across our box and intercept to score.

We nearly hit straight back when Morgan thought he’d got his second of the game, but the linesman’s flag went up after he turned in Tyrique George’s low cross from close range and the goal was chalked off for a narrow offside.

Jimi Tauriainen went close, hitting the inside of the post with a low drive from the edge of the box, but we were unable to find the goal and the win we wanted to boost our chances of qualification.

The reaction

Although it might not have been the result we wanted or deserved, head coach Mark Robinson was pleased with the control his young team showed in the first half against more experienced opposition, accustomed to playing in the Spanish men’s league pyramid domestically.

‘We had the best chances and looked the most likely to score throughout, especially troubling them out wide and being quick in the transitions, and we were fairly comfortable at the back,’ he said.

‘We had five Under-18s players starting the game and finished it with nine on the pitch, whereas they had at least three or four 22 and 23 year olds, but we definitely deserved to take the lead so that was positive.’

However, he was far from pleased with the manner in which we allowed Valencia to get back into the game with their equaliser.

‘At half-time I asked the boys what we needed to do in the next 15 minutes because we didn’t want to invite pressure. They said we need to spend as much time in their defensive third as possible, in a progressive way.

‘So it was disappointing that from kick-off we ended up back with our goalkeeper and then a couple of errors ended with giving the ball away and they made it 1-1. It almost seems to have become acceptable in football that if you’re perceived to be doing the right thing then you can give a cheap goal away. I don’t see it like that, so it was frustrating.

‘We’re developing decision making and game management so if you’re playing out under pressure you need to make sure you’ve got an overload to do it successfully. If you haven’t, then you need to see where the space is and take out that pressure.

‘It’s different if it’s a technical error, everyone makes mistakes, but to make bad decisions that early in the second half is something that we have to look at and do better. The boys are at the stage now where knowing how to win games is important and they can’t give away points cheaply.

‘I honestly believe if Valencia hadn’t scored early in the second half it would have been a different match. We knew we had to win so we ended up chasing the game, whereas we were very much in control in the first half, without being brilliant. So giving away that goal really changed the game.

‘But it’s a young group and afterwards they fully recognised that. When I asked for their thoughts, they said they were naive and immature at the beginning of the second half. It was positive to see that good self-reflection.’

The teamsChelsea 1-1 Valencia

Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Max Merrick; Richard Olise (Donnell McNeilly 85), Billy Gee (c), Ishe Samuels-Smith, Zak Sturge; Kiano Dyer, Samuel Rak-Sakyi (Reiss Denny 79); Zain Silcott-Duberry (Kaiden Wilson 85), Jimi Tauriainen (Harrison McMahon 85), Tyrique George (Somto Boniface 90+2); Jimmy-Jay Morgan
Unused subs: Luke Campbell, Ollie Harrison
Scorer: Morgan pen 43

Valencia (4-3-3): David Vassilev, Ismael Santana, David Martinez (Cesar Moreno 61), Hugo De Mateo (Carlos Aleman 76), Mark Chust, Ivan Munoz, Martin Tejon (Borja Calvo h-t), Javi Navarro, Joselu (Iker Cordoba 69), Declan Frith, Rodrigo Farofa (Mario Dominguez 69)
Unused subs: Nil Ruiz, Diego Moreno
Scorer: Farofa 47
Booked: Santana 73, Aleman 87, C. Moreno 90+3