Ancelotti not dwelling on Wigan defeat - 7M sport

Ancelotti not dwelling on Wigan defeat

Posted Wednesday, September 30, 2009 by PA

Carlo Ancelotti insists he is not feeling the pressure ahead of their Champions League clash with Apoel Nicosia despite their shock domestic defeat by Wigan on Saturday.

The Italian coach preferred to draw a line under the dismal display in the Premier League and focus on maintaining a 100% record in Europe's top competition.

Wigan handed Ancelotti his first taste of defeat in England in a 3-1 victory that exposed Chelsea's weaknesses to startling effect.

But Ancelotti has held no major inquest despite senior players John Terry and the suspended Didier Drogba voicing strong criticism of the performance.

Apoel are not expected to cause Chelsea many problems despite their 1-1 draw with Atletico Madrid in the opening round of Group D, but Ancelotti is taking no chances.

"There is a good pressure," said Ancelotti. "This is an important match because it's the second match of the group. We're now at the top and we want to maintain that.

"We'll try to win, as normal. It won't be an easy game. Apoel are a good team and have a lot of enthusiasm at this moment. They did a very good job in Madrid, drawing with Atletico, and could have won there.

"We have a lot of respect for this team, but we have to put in a good match and return to playing well and have a good direction after the Wigan game.

"We have analysed our mistakes, for sure, but I don't want to spend a lot of time on this match. It was not a good match.

"Against Wigan it was not a good day. Tomorrow I want to see a good reaction. Not a reaction: action.

"I want to see Chelsea play like we have in previous Premier matches and also as we have in the Champions League.

"We have done nothing different. Usually we analyse every game together again on a video. That's normal work for the team.

"We are not worried. We don't think about losing another game. Our thinking is to work hard, to play well and to maintain our play every game.

"We lost one game, but that can happen. We have to fix it for the next game."

Joe Cole and Deco will be on the bench on Wednesday and Ancelotti will not make a decision about left-back Ashley Cole until after their final training session.

Apoel coach Ivan Jovanovic acknowledges Chelsea as one of the best teams in Europe but insists his side could still give the Blues a scare.

Apoel were expected to be the whipping boys of Group D but their draw with Atletico demonstrated they have other ideas.

Now Jovanovic wants his side to provide Chelsea with more food for thought as they attempt to pull off one of the shock results of the group stages.

"Chelsea are the best team in the group, one of the top three or four teams in the world, and they have a real chance of winning this trophy," said Jovanovic.

"They have an excellent coach who has already won the Champions League and, for sure, they are the favourites.

"We have to start the game well and try our best to play our own game, always hoping for a good result.

"We'll have to exceed ourselves to achieve that, but we have done it already many times before.

"We'll try to do it again tomorrow (Wednesday). It's not made easier by the fact that we have four players missing, two defenders and two attackers, but we have to show we can cope without them and still challenge Chelsea.

"Chelsea have a much better team than ours, that's clear. They are an extremely attacking team and an excellent unit.

"But they're also a team that can defend well together and play well. They have star players, but the team as a whole is a star.

"But one of the strengths of our team is that we are excited to be playing in games like this."

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