Andre Villas-Boas taunted his doubters following Chelsea’s Champions League triumph against Valencia.
The Blues boss was under intense pressure ahead of the game at Stamford Bridge, where a defeat or score draw would have sent his team out of the tournament.
Didier Drogba’s brace helped Chelsea to resounding 3-0 win and they ended up finishing top of their group, enabling Villas-Boas to round on those who suggested his future would be in doubt if Tuesday’s result went against him.
“It was a win of human values, spirit, solidarity, responsibility, strength of character and ability to take criticism,” he declared.
“This is a great win for Chelsea’s players. They deserve respect which they don’t get. We’ve been continuously chased by different kinds of people and different kinds of pressure. Maybe today we’ve given everybody a slap in the face.
“There is a continuous persecution of Chelsea – continuous aggressiveness towards one club. We’ve become your [the media’s] target. We accept that, but you have to accept it was a brilliant win.
“That’s unfortunate for you, because it means you will have to report a brilliant win for Chelsea.”
Villas-Boas acknowledged that early goals from Drogba and Ramires were crucial in terms of easing the pressure on his players.
“It [Drogba’s opener] gave us a full boost of confidence and to get the second goal not long afterwards made the team even more confident,” he said.
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This post was last modified on 07/12/2011