• Champions League

Villas-Boas defends team selection

ESPN staff
February 21, 2012
Andre Villas-Boas defended his team selection © Getty Images
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Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas insists he does not fear for his job after seeing his side throw away a lead in their Champions League clash against Napoli.

Chelsea's participation in the Champions League remains in the balance after the Blues slumped to a 3-1 defeat in Naples. Juan Mata gave the visitors the lead at the Stadio San Paolo, but two goals from Ezequiel Lavezzi and one from Edinson Cavani secured a two-goal cushion for the Serie A side ahead of the second leg at Stamford Bridge.

Villas-Boas has repeatedly insisted his job would not depend on the outcome of the last-16 tie, but with Chelsea out of the Premier League title race, the pressure is on the Portuguese to salvage something from Chelsea's season.

Villas-Boas also defended his team selection - he left Frank Lampard, Michael Essien, Ashley Cole and Fernando Torres on the bench, and when asked if he believed if he would still be in charge for the second leg, the Portuguese replied: "For sure."

On his team selection he said: "You can have your opinion but it was based on what was the best team in my thoughts."

Villas-Boas was left to rue a series of defensive blunders by his side, but he remains confident Chelsea can turn the tie around.

"We had a chance to go 2-0 up and a couple of defensive mistakes that against Napoli, with their attacking strength, will get punished," he said. "A one-goal disadvantage would have been a bit better but it is not impossible to recover 3-1 because of the number of chances we get and the environment we must create to turn this tie around and go through.

"We will analyse strongly what we did wrongly because a couple of things need to get better. We have the knowledge we can create problems with our attacking options.

"In the end the statistics were similar, both teams created a lot, the game was open and end to end. Napoli scored their third goal in our best period and it took us a little bit down. Didier Drogba had a chance at the end - but there is a big possibility, with this away goal, to turn the tie around."

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