Mauricio Pochettino says his Chelsea side “gave up” during their damaging 5-0 defeat by Arsenal at Emirates stadium.

Having gone into half-time 1-0 down, the Blues conceded four goals during a devastating 18-minute spell in the second half as they fell to their heaviest defeat in a London derby since 1986.

Pochettino had made three changes to his defence for the game, opting to rest Trevoh Chalobah and Thiago Silva, while Malo Gusto sustained an injury during Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final loss to Manchester City.

“It’s not difficult to explain,” said Pochettino. “Everyone saw we didn’t compete from the beginning of the game.

“After we conceded the team was so soft. I’m so disappointed with the start because we’re supposed to have full energy and compete better.

“We were not aggressive and we did not concentrate on situations where it is easy to find the solution. That is why I’m so disappointed.”

Chelsea had gone into the match on an eight-game unbeaten run in the Premier League and an outside chance of qualifying for Europe next season.

But Tuesday’s loss – their biggest of the season – leaves them ninth in the table.

“We were talking at half-time to start in a different way,” added Pochettino. “But we did not. When we conceded the third goal the team gave up. It was tough on them.

“We competed really well against Manchester City, it was a fantastic game. But then we did not compete three days later. Maybe we were not fresh.

“It’s not fair to talk about the players we are missing. From the start of the season we have been missing so many players every single week.

“The team showed a lack of capacity to resist – that is what is the problem.”