Villas-Boas: Abramovich still backs me

ANDRE VILLAS-BOAS has refused to accept he is fighting to keep his job as Stamford Bridge after Chelsea lost two home games in a row for the first time in the Roman Abramovich era — and has instead claimed the club’s notoriously twitchy owner is behind him.

Villas-Boas’ attempts to change Chelsea’s style and approach since he replaced Carlo Ancelotti in the summer has left them vulnerable at the back; and having lost 5-3 to Arsenal and now 2-1 to Liverpool at the Bridge the young manager was on the defensive last night.

“I think it’s not a question of the owner having patience,” he insisted. “We have set out to build something new at this club and the club is committed to taking what we’re building to the future.

“The owner didn’t pay €15m to get me out of Porto to pay me another fortune to get out of here. Our commitment is towards the club and what we are doing in the future. We have enough talent to compete in all competitions, and that’s the perspective we take.

“At the moment the perspective is we need to win every game if we are to maintain a title challenge.”

That statement may not prove to be an exaggeration, either, because Chelsea are now 12 points behind leaders Manchester City after this latest set-back with many other teams circling around them.

Villas-Boas added: “Man City are playing well, and that’s the end of the story. United are playing well and are in front of us. Arsenal are playing well and recovering. Newcastle are playing well, as are Liverpool. We have to play well to get the results we need. The last time a club recovered 12 points was a long time ago but that doesn’t mean we can’t do that. We believe we’ll get it right.”

Villa-Boas responded curtly to criticism of his defender David Luiz by television pundit and former Manchester United player Gary Neville.

Neville, commentating on the game for Sky, slated Brazilan centre-back Luiz saying: “His movement is like he’s being controlled by a 10-year-old with a Playstation controller.”

His comments have become an instant hit on the web but Villas-Boas was not impressed.

“I don’t think so,” he insisted. “Gary was a fantastic defender and I have nothing to say about his opinion. It’s a stupid approach to an opinion, but if that’s the way he wants to take the game, that’s ridiculous.”