Valencia boss backs Benitez to sink Chelsea

Valencia coach Antonio Lopez believes his former boss Rafael Benitez can outsmart Chelsea when his Liverpool side tackle the Londoners in the Champions League tomorrow.

Lopez worked under Benitez during his time at Valencia, when the club enjoyed unprecedented success in winning the Spanish league title twice and the UEFA Cup.

Benitez left Valencia for Liverpool last summer and although his new club have struggled for consistency in the Barclays Premiership, they have defied the odds to reach the Champions League semi-finals.

The draw has pitted them against Chelsea and although they will not be expected to beat the runaway Premiership leaders, Lopez sees no reason why they should not progress to the final in Istanbul.

“It is going to be a game which is very equal and very competitive,” Lopez told PA International ahead of tomorrow’s first leg at Stamford Bridge.

“Often it is not the team which plays the best that wins but the team which makes least mistakes.”

Benitez arrived in England at the same time Jose Mourinho took over at Chelsea. Mourinho tasted success in the Champions League with Porto last season and has made an instant impact in the Premiership but Lopez believes Benitez can still come out on top.

“I don’t know Mourinho,” he said. “I think that he is a very good trainer looking at his results, although as a comparison I think that he has a wider background than Benitez as he has experience from lots of different sources.

“But I think that Liverpool are going to be a very tough opponent for Chelsea.”

Lopez is now in charge at Valencia after Claudio Ranieri’s second spell at the club proved unsuccessful.

His side have struggled to live up to the standards of the Benitez years this season and are facing a battle to qualify for the Champions League.

Lopez admits Benitez’s decision to leave the Mestalla was a blow for the club but is not surprised that he would eventually want to test himself in a different country.

“We had a good side and managed some great results,” Lopez said. “We knew each other before coming together at Valencia. We talked about the possibility of working here and decided to give it a go and it worked out.

“We had a fantastic working relationship and we managed to achieve the greatest successes in the history of Valencia.

“Now from time to time we miss him here. He is a very good trainer, but things move on and I wish him all the luck.

“I am not surprised that he went to Liverpool after what he achieved at Valencia. It was always going to open up the door to lots of possibilities.”

Benitez worked his way up the coaching ladder under Vicente del Bosque at Real Madrid before unremarkable spells in charge at Valladolid, Osasuna and Extremadura.

He left the game to study new approaches and ideas for a year before returning to lead Tenerife to promotion. He was then picked up by Valencia and led the club to their first title in 31 years.

Lopez is full of praise for his achievements, even though their friendship has deteriorated since they went their separate ways.

Lopez almost moved to Anfield with his former boss, but it is believed the pair could not agree on the assistant’s personal terms.

“It is a while since I last spoke to him,” Lopez said. “We talked about going and the conditions but in the end I decided to stay here and that was that.

“He will always be remembered here for the trophies that he won, the club have picked up titles before but never consecutively.

“His special quality I would say is that he is a good organiser and so everyone knew what they should do. He always looked at the smallest details.

“Someone who is capable of winning two leagues and a UEFA Cup with a team like Valencia has something special.”