Chelsea lost 2-0 at Stamford Bridge on Saturday after goalkeeper Mike Penders turned a punch into his own net and Mathys Tel added a late second. The result ended a promising run, but Lacroix believes the next fixture gives the squad a clear target.
“It’s a big game for us,” Lacroix told Chelsea’s official website. “We want to go far in this competition and it’s good that we have a game like this now. We have to move on and work on some details to be stronger in certain moments and change some situations.
“We have to show the reaction of a competitor. We want to show another face, we want to win there, and it’s going to be a big game.”
He also made a point of standing behind Penders, who was making his first Premier League start when the costly error occurred. The Belgian had produced good saves earlier in the match, but the mistake put Chelsea behind with 13 minutes remaining.
“He is a young goalkeeper and he has a lot of talent,” Lacroix said. “He will learn from this. This can happen in football careers and in life, everyone makes mistakes, and we have to be with him and we are going to be with him.
“We are behind him. He will help us this season and now we have to help him.”
Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso has confirmed Penders will retain his place against Liverpool, underlining the club’s intention to support the goalkeeper rather than let one difficult moment define his start.
Chelsea’s immediate challenge is to turn that support into a collective response. Tottenham’s opener came from a set-piece situation, and the late second made the scoreline harder to overturn. Lacroix’s message was clear: the team must learn from the defeat and show its character in the cup.