Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel has acknowledged that Thursday's 1-1 draw with Everton on Thursday night is "hard to swallow".

The Blues, who were hindered by several absences due to coronavirus, dominated the game at Stamford Bridge and led through Mason Mount's 70th-minute goal.

However, Jarrad Branthwaite equalised four minutes later as Chelsea yet again failed to hold onto a lead, and Tuchel admitted after the contest that he had been left frustrated with his team's efforts at both ends of the pitch.

Speaking to BT Sport, the German said: "Yes, of course (it is frustrating) to give away another lead. If we see the effort we bring in a match like this, the effort we need to score one goal and the effort the opponent needs to score an equaliser - it is hard to swallow.

"We missed big chances to get the result in the first half and second half we did not find the rhythm consistently and tried to bring on some energy from the bench, but it was hard. We had the lead and give it away with one free kick."

Chelsea now sit four points adrift of Premier League leaders Manchester City, while three points separate the West Londoners to second-placed Liverpool.