Angry Villas-Boas slams media

AVB hits out at press over Lamps and Drogba

After a few days of explaining his stance to the media, Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas has slammed their coverage of his tactics as pressure mounts on veteran stars Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba to fight for starting XI places.

Villas-Boas controversially substituted Lampard during the interval at Old Trafford last Sunday and although Chelsea were trailing 3-0 to Manchester United at that point, the 33-year old had been one of the better performers for the Blues.

Since then, Lampard has struggled to regain his spot from Raul Meireles and was not even brought on as a substitute during the club’s 4-1 win at home to Swansea this past weekend.

AVB initially remained calm in the face of scrutiny, attributing Lampard’s lack of playing time to tactical decisions but with speculation mounting over the veteran midfielder’s place in the starting line-up against Valencia tonight, the manager has lost his cool.

“Why has he not been playing? How many games did he start in the Premier League? So you just took the negative part instead of the positive part. I think I’ve answered it enough,” an irritated Villas-Boas said as he lashed out at the press.

He added: “Frank is an established, top-quality player, one of the most important at the club and will continue to be. He has nothing to prove to the football world and will continue to show that. He is a spectacular team player and professional and I hope he will continue to succeed in this club for many years to come, as long as I am here.”

When explicitly asked whether Lampard is in the frame to start tonight’s match at Valencia, Villas-Boas refused to give a definitive answer.

“It’s 26 players for 11 places. What is the dramatic thing here? The biggest challenge [is] motivating everybody – all want to play and compete for a place. There is no mystique,” the manager asserted.

Drogba, whose recent return from injury has been marked by intense competition with the likes of Nicolas Anelka, Daniel Sturridge, and the under-pressure £50 million signing Fernando Torres, was also brought up in the conversation in the same vein as Lampard.

But instead of defending his own tactics regarding the use of the two Chelsea stalwarts, Villas-Boas turned the tables on the press, accusing them of having the wrong perspective altogether.

“You have it (the team selection) in wrong perspective. It’s for the benefit of the team. You’ve got it all wrong. There should be no negative criticisms,” he argued.

In addition to John Obi Mikel and Petr Cech, Drogba himself jumped to the defense of the tactics employed by the new manager, insisting that the season is too long for any one to be complaining about starting places.

“Last season, there was a time when we were complaining about the bench being a bit short and for sure now we have a strong bench and it is good. That is what we need because there are a lot of competitions and we want to win them all, so we need everyone. We are progressing,” the Ivory Coast striker concluded.

Following tonight’s match at La Mestalla, the Blues will head to the Reebok Stadium to face the struggling Bolton Wanderers and there clearly remains uncertainty over the status of Lamps and Drogba for both matches.

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