Kurt Zouma has made a damning admission Chelsea struggle get themselves up for matches if they are not playing against the top sides.

In their last Premier League match of the year, Chelsea pulled off an incredible four-minute turnaround as Tammy Abraham scored a dramatic late winner in the London derby, beating their hosts Arsenal 2-1.

Zouma has been a regular in Frank Lampard’s side which are pushing for a top four finish this season despite a transfer ban stopping them signing any new players.

But the London club’s attempts to seal a return to the Champions League are being knocked by them slipping up against some of the weakest sides in the Premier League, report The Sun.

Over the past month Chelsea have suffered embarrassing home defeats to West Ham, Bournemouth and Southampton – as well as being thrashed at Everton.

All four clubs are embroiled in a relegation battle and have struggled to win games this season.

And defender Zouma has admitted the fault lays at the failure of the Chelsea players to get motivated to take on anyone other than the big clubs.

The 25-year-old told French TV station Canal+: “For the big matches, the motivation is already there… for the other matches at home, maybe we are less motivated.”