Hiddink on Man Utd, whether Hazard will start, Oscar ‘speculation’ and Pato’s fitness
Guus Hiddink was asked about a number of issues at his news conference on Friday ahead of this weekend’s match against Manchester United. Here’s a rundown of what the Chelsea boss had to say.
On the players’ fitness
“The squad is looking okay after the midweek game against Watford. The players have come back in and they seem to be very fit, except that Radamel Falcao is not in and Loic Remy is not in. The rest seem to be very good.
“Pedro did good training this morning. We’ll see how he’ll react to this intensive training. But I don’t think there will be big problems. He was very alive. Remy will be involved next week.”
On Alexandre Pato
“Pato is in, let’s say, his pre-season and we have made a training plan which he is doing now, every day at least once, but most days twice. It means that he is getting his fitness, but not full fitness yet – he needs to be fine-tuned. He will not be in for the upcoming few games. We want to have him fit and not go too early, for the risk of injury in this tough league.
“Technically he’s very good. He’s ambitious, of course, but he needs more physical fitness at this moment. He played his last game on 28 November then [had a] holiday because it’s a different season [in Brazil] so it’s a kind of pre-season for him. We like to pressure him but we must be careful not to go over the top.”
On Eden Hazard
“Whether he will start, we’ll see. He came on in the last game and played for a little bit more than half-time in the FA Cup [against MK Dons].
“Bringing him back on a good level is also key for us and with him [we’re] not taking big, big risks because many games are coming up and we’ll need him more, bit by bit. But we’ll see whether he starts or comes on.”
On how John Terry is coping with his contract situation
“I don’t notice any change, because first of all he’s a very experienced player. He has gone through all good things and storms in football. You don’t notice difference in John. He likes to train, he’s having his laughs. I don’t notice any differences. We don’t have any updates [on his contractual dispute].”
On Chelsea fans’ reaction to Terry
“He was well received at Watford. They supported him, they cheered him, so I hope and think we will have a good reaction. The spectators may react as they wish. But what they have to do is support John and the team.”
On the Manchester United game
“This is a big match – big clubs through the years. Manchester has to compete and likes to compete for the title, this year they must go into the Champions League positions.
“They have underperformed, we’re getting back a bit on track, although I’d like to have more victories instead of draws. But I think the team is, step-by-step, more stable. Now we hope to go into a beautiful spring time.”
On United’s difficulties this season
“Every club during a season has some periods where they might worry a bit. We have had that as well. They have to perform, as we have to perform here as well.
“There’s pressure – there was and still is big ambition [at Old Trafford], they have to cope with that. The pressure is on everyone but if you have the possibility to go into the first position then the pressure is on.”
On his relationship with, and good record against, United boss Louis van Gaal
“We have both had a long career but we haven’t met [on the field] with a lot of frequency – in Spain a few times and in Holland a few times, but not that much. We have a professional relationship.
“I don’t think we must over-value the role of the managers. Of course, the managers, with the staff, prepare the games, focused on the opponent and also how we like to play, but at the end the players have to execute what you’re doing in training and in team meetings. So we must not over-value, in my opinion, a ‘battle’ between managers. It’s a battle between the two teams.”
On reports Ramires’ new club Jiangsu Suning made a bid for Oscar
“On Ramires, we can say that he had a great offer. Oscar is just, for me, speculation, and we don’t go into that.”
On the growing ambition of Chinese clubs
“It shows that China is very serious to get into international football and earn the recognition of the football world. I know that because, before I came here, I had some contacts over there.
“It is relatively easy to bring in big money and to buy star players, especially from this league or other big leagues, but I think that it’s equally important for the development of Chinese football to bring in very high-quality people who know how to educate and how to ground academies.
“You cannot just, in my opinion, buy, with a lot of money, star players and think that you have grounded Chinese football. I know from their side, even from high-ranked government people, they are having a very serious approach towards Chinese football.”
On the chances of reaching the top four
“It’s difficult. We are unbeaten and we have made some victories – we are through in the FA Cup. But to get into fourth position you need to win, win, win. That’s very, very, very difficult.”
On not converting chances
“The previous game [versus MK Dons] was okay against, with all respect, a lesser opponen, but when we go to a strong Watfrod team, we were very close but we did not have the ultimate sharpness to finish it off. I must say that my former goalie [Heurelho Gomes, ex-PSV Eindhoven], he extended his legs and arms etc.
“I said before the game in the FA Cup we must not just depend on Diego Costa, regarding the goals – they responded, Oscar responded. We need the attackers to finish it off.”
On ex-players, such as Zinedine Zidane and Gary Neville, taking on big clubs as their managerial first job
“It’s not easy, it depends how the big players cope with their status. If a player thinks that he can do the job overnight, being player [then] being manager, then I think he might be mistaken.
“Players having these great careers, great experience, they must bring also a foundation in knowledge – how to practice, how to prepare a team. They need to have a good course, many of the players do.
“When I was working with the Dutch federation, we had the idea to bring [Ruud] Gullit, [Ronald] Koeman, [Marco] Van Basten, [Johan] Neeskens, [Frank] Rijkaard in as ex players on a shortened, intense course. After having these classes they were convinced to do it, and it paid off.
“With Zidane, I loved him as a player. He knows this club, he was in Castilla – the second team – and he can make good progress I think. On top of that, the personality is important, can you go in with both feet on the ground?”
On big-name strikers struggling to match likes of Jamie Vardy
“I don’t know if this is stress causing them not to score every week. In the case of Vardy, he made this beautiful goal without thinking and that’s what Oscar did in the previous game [against MK Dons] as well. I don’t think they feel that pressure from the outside world.”
On the burden of goalscoring resting on Costa
“He is used to doing that. I am not worried when one game he doesn’t score. If he doesn’t score then other players must take the opportunity.”
