The Hindu : Sport : Defiant Scolari not giving up title hopes

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Tuesday, Jan 13, 2009
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Defiant Scolari not giving up title hopes

MANCHESTER: Chelsea manager Luiz Felipe Scolari refused to accept his side’s Premier League title hopes were over after it was humbled 3-0 by defending champion Manchester United on Sunday.

Scolari admitted his side must not repeat the kind of performance it gave in the second half at Old Trafford and called for his players to get their challenge back on course.

“Don’t think if we lose one game we are finished. We have 17 games left and we will fight to the last,” Scolari told reporters.

“You never know what will happen but if we play like we did today for the next three of four games we will not win.

“But now is the time for me and the players to think about the future. We can lose everything or we can be men and we can improve.”

Scolari said the defeat by United, watched by former Chelsea coach Jose Mourinho in the Old Trafford crowd, had done ‘very big damage’ to his side’s confidence after it went behind to a Nemanja Vidic header and then capitulated after the break when Wayne Rooney and Dimitar Berbatov added further goals.

He added: “The performance for the first 45 minutes was very good. It was the same as Manchester United but we conceded a goal in the last minute of the first half and that changed the game.

“After the goal they played with more freedom. We tried to put more players forward and that gave them the space they wanted to play. In the second 45 minutes they played very well. They were better than us.”

Though Chelsea’s weaknesses were exposed, Scolari ruled out any signings in the January transfer window and placed much of the responsibility on his own shoulders.

“I know that more players do not arrive. I don’t want more players,” he said. “I have very good players, and this is my squad, finished.

“They are in good condition,” the Brazilian added. “It is my responsibility I need to change the system or something more. They try to do the best, maybe make mistakes, maybe wrong, but it is my job now to change something.”

Scolari shrugged off the presence of the man whose record he will inevitably be judged against. “Mourinho came here to watch United, that is normal,” the Brazilian said. “Mourinho is an intelligent man. He didn’t come here to tell me he loves me.” — Agencies

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