Benitez sought to build bridges and ease tensions, days after castigating hostile fans and aiming a swipe at club officials for his 'interim' job title. ...
10:08 PM, Mar 01, 2013
Villas-Boas has admitted he made mistakes at Chelsea and that they were right to dismiss him after less than nine months in charge. ...
10:19 PM, Jan 15, 2013
Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho was named as the best coach of 2012 by the Federation of Football History and Statistics. ...
08:50 PM, Jan 09, 2013
Chelsea have won their last three EPL matches and kept four clean sheets since Benitez took over last month following the sacking of di Matteo. ...
04:01 PM, Dec 28, 2012
London: Rafa Benitez's winless start as Chelsea manager worsened on Saturday as West Ham came from behind to beat their London rival 3-1 in the Premier League on Saturday. Juan Mata put Chelsea ahead in a fluent first-half performance, but the European champions collapsed after former striker Carlton Cole equalized in the 63rd minute with a contentious header. But there was no disputing the late goals from West Ham substitutes...
08:35 PM, Dec 01, 2012
London: Chelsea interim manager Rafael Benitez says the decision to drop playmaker Juan Mata to the bench for the dour 0-0 draw with Fulham on Wednesday was simply to give him a rest, and he will do the same with other players. Benitez has had a tough introduction from the Chelsea fans since replacing popular Champions League winner Roberto Di Matteo a little over a week ago, and dropping Mata,...
09:59 PM, Nov 30, 2012
European champions Chelsea would have been better served putting former Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp in charge rather than Rafael Benitez, according to former Stamford Bridge great Alan Hudson. Spaniard Benitez, 52, was appointed as interim manager on Wednesday following the sacking of Roberto Di Matteo six months after the Italian led the London club to their first Champions League title. "I wouldn't say Harry Redknapp is the best manager...
07:50 PM, Nov 22, 2012
Manchester: If Manchester City's Abu Dhabi owners were as ruthless as Chelsea's Russian billionaire boss Roman Abramovich, then City coach Roberto Mancini would already be out a job following his side's elimination from the Champions League. Abramovich wasted no time on Wednesday sacking Italian Roberto Di Matteo three months after he led them to their greatest night by lifting the European Cup in Munich. Di Matteo's crime, besides never being...
06:37 PM, Nov 22, 2012
London: Chelsea have hired Rafa Benitez as interim manager until the end of the season, only hours after firing Roberto Di Matteo following the club's dip in form in the Premier League and Champions League title defense. The 52-year-old Benitez becomes the ninth manager under Chelsea's Russian owner, Roman Abramovich, who displayed his trademark ruthlessness by sacking Di Matteo only six months after the Italian guided the London club to...
01:27 AM, Nov 22, 2012
Former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola, linked in the media with the Chelsea job after the sacking of Roberto Di Matteo, will not make any decision on his future until early next year, his agent said on Wednesday. "I was with him 15 days ago and he told me that before January or February he won't decide which club he will coach or if he will be sitting on any bench...
08:09 PM, Nov 21, 2012
London: After one of the most unpredictable Champions League matchdays in years, some of Europe's big names have reputations to restore and ground to make up this week as the group stage approaches crunch time. While Manchester City already is in must-win territory, AC Milan, Juventus, Bayern Munich and Chelsea find themselves in precarious positions heading into the fourth round of matches. Of that stellar quartet, Chelsea is in most...
05:38 PM, Nov 05, 2012
London: Chelsea manager Roberto Di Matteo said he had no hesitation in starting John Obi Mikel in Wednesday's thrilling 5-4 League Cup last-16 victory over Manchester United at Stamford Bridge. Mikel had a strong match in the centre of Chelsea's midfield on Wednesday, before being withdrawn in the second half as he had picked up a yellow card. Di Matteo would not answer questions from reporters about the Mark Clattenburg...
10:56 AM, Nov 01, 2012
London: After impressive away wins at Arsenal and Tottenham, Chelsea can knock over an even bigger English Premier League rival when Manchester United visits Stamford Bridge on Sunday in the highest-profile match of the season so far. The European champions have won seven of their eight league matches to power into a four-point lead, with the manner of their victories just as impressive as the results. Roberto di Matteo has...
08:30 AM, Oct 28, 2012
Chelsea coach Roberto di Matteo says he's prepared enter mind games with Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson to maintain the advantage ahead of top of the table clash between the two sides at Stamford Bridge on Sunday. Di Matteo revealed he would resort to fighting fire with fire if necessary as he prepared to pit his wits against the man he admitted was still the best in the business...
09:47 AM, Oct 27, 2012
Chelsea manager Roberto Di Matteo has backed striker Fernando Torres ahead of Sundays Premier League tie against Manchester United. Torres, who joined Chelsea in January 2011 from Liverpool for 50m Pounds, hasnt been fully up to the mark despite a marked improvement in his game in the last few months. Fernando has always cared but he had a difficult time. This season its different. He is playing well, looking good...
08:47 AM, Oct 27, 2012
London: Chelsea vice-captain Frank Lampard will miss the crucial Premier League fixture against Manchester United on Sunday due to the recurrence of calf injury which forced the midfielder to limp out of the clubs 1-2 Champions League defeat to Shakhtar Donetsk on Tuesday. The 34-year-old lasted only 15 minutes of the game. "It's basically a recurrence of an old injury, said Chelsea manger Roberto Di Matteo. "He was training with...
09:08 AM, Oct 26, 2012
Donetsk: Chelsea's Roberto Di Matteo issued a warning to Shakhtar Donetsk after the Ukrainians handed the Italian his first Champions League defeat as a coach on Tuesday. "We are very strong at home and it will be a different game back in London," Di Matteo told reporters after the holders went down 2-1 at the Donbass Arena. Chelsea host Shakhtar at Stamford Bridge in their next Champions League fixture on...
08:44 AM, Oct 24, 2012
London: Chelsea manager Roberto Di Matteo refused to confirm whether John Terry would remain as club captain, with his four-match domestic ban for racially abusing Anton Ferdinand due to start with Saturday's game against Tottenham Hotspur. Terry was banned for four matches and fined 220,000 pounds this month after an independent Football Association (FA) commission found him guilty of abusing Ferdinand last year. He had until Thursday to appeal but...
10:01 PM, Oct 19, 2012
London: John Obi Mikel's value to Chelsea often goes unrecognised by the media and by fans of the European champions but manager Roberto Di Matteo says the Nigeria midfielder is one of the club's unsung heroes. Mikel occupies the anchor role just in front of the defence and gets only rare chances to go for glory further forwards, evidenced by the fact he is still waiting to bag his first...
06:32 PM, Oct 15, 2012
London: Chelsea defender Ashley Cole will be disciplined by the club for his foul-mouthed Twitter rant against the Football Association (FA), manager Roberto Di Matteo said on Saturday. Di Matteo told reporters after the 4-1 Premier League win over Norwich City that the England left-back would be punished by the Londoners but he refused to go into details. Cole is also likely to be disciplined by the FA. "We've got...
09:18 AM, Oct 07, 2012
