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Charlton boss reacts to Harambee Stars’ defender Collins Sichenje’s recurring injuries
27th August, 2026 09:10 AM
Charlton Athletic manager Nathan Jones was left frustrated by injuries to centre-backs Collins Sichenje and Billy Koumetio during Wednesday night’s, August 26, 2026, Carabao Cup defeat to Tottenham Hotspur.
The Addicks were beaten 5-1 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with Lloyd Jones scoring Charlton’s only goal. The defender has now found the net in three consecutive matches.
Charlton’s defensive problems began early in the contest. Sichenje was forced off after just 15 minutes on his debut after struggling with fitness since joining the English side, while Koumetio also left the pitch around the same period after picking up an injury.
Speaking after the match, Jones expressed his disappointment with both the result and the defensive issues that contributed to the heavy defeat.
“I’m really disappointed. The goals we’re gutted about because they are from set plays, allowing people to come inside and shoot – that’s bread and butter for us; we don’t do that,” he said.
“I’m disappointed with the goals, but it’s a disappointing night for so many other things as well. We picked up two injuries which killed us; we lost two centre halves during the first 10-12 minutes against a top Premier League side. What do you do? Then we’ve got a young team, with players that haven’t played, and we’ve come up against a top side; we’ve been nowhere near, but that’s not a massive surprise.”
Despite losing two central defenders, Charlton continued to show attacking intent. Greg Docherty tested Tottenham goalkeeper Antonín Kinský with a good effort, while Nathan Asiimwe also went close with a header.
Tottenham eventually broke the deadlock in the 41st minute before taking control of the contest after the interval.
Jones felt Charlton had remained competitive for much of the opening period before Tottenham’s quality eventually made the difference.
“Up until about 40 minutes, we could have kept the ball better, but our keeper didn’t really have to make a save,” Jones said. “Their keeper had to make one or two saves. We were ok and we were in the game. When you give them those two goals in quick succession, then they play with freedom. They are a world-class team; they have players they are bringing on and it’s really, really difficult.
The Charlton boss also acknowledged the difficult circumstances surrounding the fixture, with his side having to balance a cup tie against a Premier League opponent with their Championship commitments.
“This was a game tonight that was great for the fans and great for the club, but from a squad perspective, coming out of a Championship game and preparing for another, it’s a real tricky one. There are very few upsets now; the Premier League sides are too good, they have too many resources, they have too big a squad, and they have world-class internationals right throughout them, and then when you play them at their place, it is very, very difficult. We’ll dust ourselves down because our bread and butter is Saturday.
Jones explained that fielding his strongest possible side could have created further problems ahead of Charlton’s next league fixture against Preston North End.
“If I’d played my first team today, then we’d have been up against it physically to go into the game against Preston at the weekend, and we can’t do that because this game will be quickly forgotten about, while our Championship season is something that is day in and day out. I feel a little bit down and sick for the injuries because if we lost 5-1 but had no injuries, it would not have been that problem. The injuries – there is a knock-on effect from that.
Charlton now have little time to dwell on the cup exit, with Jones turning his attention towards their Championship campaign and the need to manage the squad carefully.
“It’s dusting ourselves down [over the next two days]. We managed to rest a load of players tonight. We left a number of them at home; it’s just in a certain area where we’re struggling a little bit. We’re going to have to work very hard in the next few days,” he added.
The Addicks will return to league action at The Valley on Saturday, August 29, 2026, when they host Preston North End in the Sky Bet Championship.
