Sunday 27 September 2015 08:21, UK
Jamie Redknapp believes Chelsea's inability to add another striker to the squad in the summer is costing them after their 2-2 draw at Newcastle.
Late goals from substitutes Ramires and Willian denied the Magpies their first win of the season, with the hosts having been two goals in front in the Saturday Night Football encounter.
However, once again, the Premier League champions looked out of sorts in the north east, and slipped further behind in the title race.
They've missed a real trick not buying a centre-forward that can do that job that Costa does because everybody knows, he's going to get banned again before the end of the season.
Jose Mourinho's men looked toothless without Diego Costa to lead the line and with Loic Remy and substitute Radamel Falcao struggling to make an impact, Redknapp believes the Chelsea boss must take some of the blame for not recognising the need for alternatives to Costa in the summer.
"If you're going to miss a player that much, you need to have something to come in and do the job that he does," Redknapp said.
"So I think that Jose Mourinho has to accept responsibility for not bringing in someone who can do that job.
"I think the decision to sign Falcao, as much as Falcao was an unbelievable player a couple of years ago, you can see he's not at that level anymore.
"So I think he [Mourinho] has to take responsibility. He was so insistent on getting a defender through the door, they've missed a real trick not buying a centre-forward that can do that job that Costa does because the way he plays football you're sometimes going to have to do without him."
Thierry Henry had an alternative viewpoint, and believes that the way Chelsea played in the first half meant even if Costa was playing, he'd be a bystander with no service.
"In the first half, even if you had Diego Costa, Maradona and Pele, the way they played in the first half was shocking," Henry said.
"You can't go out there in the Premier League and play the way they played, and suddenly in the second half, it's another team.
"The full-backs were allowed to go forward, Cesar Azpilicueta and Branislav Ivanovic on the ball playing way higher.
"Ramires brought something different, Willian brought the same thing, but their desire was there.
"You're always going to miss Diego Costa, but in the first half, the way they played was shocking."
