Source: SKY_Sports
Petrov - Blues have lost belief
Aston Villa midfielder Stiliyan Petrov believes Chelsea have lost the 'belief' they possessed under former boss Jose Mourinho.[LNB] The Blues claimed back-to-back Premier League titles and lifted the FA Cup and Carling Cups during the Portuguese manager's successful tenure.[LNB]But Chelsea are now onto their third manager since Mourinho's departure in September 2007 with Guus Hiddink appointed until the end of the season after Avram Grant and then Luiz Felipe Scolari were unable to secure the success the club craved.[LNB]Hiddink's first match in charge is a trip to Villa Park to tackle Martin O'Neill's men, live on Sky Sports 1 and HD1, and Petrov claims the fixture does not hold the fear it once did for the hosts.[LNB]ChangesHe said: "Have Chelsea lost their invincibility? When Jose Mourinho was here, they had a special team and they had more belief in themselves.[LNB]"They are definitely not the team they used to be under Jose Mourinho.[LNB]"A lot of changes have happened there but they will still be strong, they have players to win games. We will try to give them as much respect as we can but we will try to win as well."[LNB]The Bulgaria international knows the meeting is crucial for both clubs with Chelsea now 10 points adrift of leaders Manchester United and Villa two points better off.[LNB]Petrov added: "Chelsea will be strong. They have a new manager. Every new manager tries to win his first game.[LNB]"We expect a very hard game. They will try to show they are still fighting for the title but we won't give up.[LNB]"We will try to show them what we have achieved so far is not just because of luck but because of the way we have been playing.[LNB]"It is a very tight race at the moment and every point from now on will be important."[LNB]StrongerAnd Petrov wants to see if Villa have improved since the one-sided 2-0 Stamford Bridge defeat against their rivals earlier in the campaign.[LNB]He said: "That is the game in which we were really outplayed. They were quicker, faster, stronger than us and it is up to us to see if we have taken anything from that game.[LNB]"We will find out if we have learnt from our mistakes, find out if we are we going to be the same. We will see on Saturday.[LNB]"We have a lot of points to prove - but first to prove we are not in our situation through luck but through hard work and good play."[LNB]
