Source: Daily_Mail
Ancelotti has to win with kids: Anelka ruled out of crunch Christmas games
Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti will hand his young stars a key role in the crucial Christmas programme after being dealt a double striker blow.[LNB]Both Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka will be missing for Chelsea's derby clash against in-form Fulham.[LNB]Drogba will sign off for his club against Birmingham on Saturday before departing to the Africa Cup of Nations after Chelsea conceded defeat in their battle to hold on to their prolific striker.[LNB] Star pair: Nicolas Anelka and Didier Drogba will be missing for Chelsea on Boxing Day[LNB]That blow has been compounded by the news that Anelka will miss both games after scans revealed he has torn his left hamstring and is facing a further two weeks on the sidelines, having already missed the draw against West Ham.[LNB]The crisis over the club's two leading strikers means Daniel Sturridge will partner Drogba in attack at Birmingham while Sturridge and 18-year-old Chelsea youth team product Fabio Borini will be charged with the task of shooting down Fulham at home on Monday.[LNB]It will be a tall order for the young pair because neither has started a league game for Chelsea and they have made only 11 appearances between them.[LNB]Ancelotti revealed he had failed to delay Drogba's departure to join up with Ivory Coast for the competition which starts on January 10.[LNB]He said: 'I made a mistake. Officially, the players have to go 14 days before the start of the Africa Cup of Nations. I spoke with the (Ivory Coast) manager two weeks ago. He would like to have the players, all of them who are involved in the Premier League, on December 27. We cannot go against FIFA rules.'[LNB]Any lingering hopes were ended by the Ivory Coast manager Vahid Halilhodzic saying: 'I've had conversations with Carlo Ancelotti who wanted his players kept back in England, as did Arsenal, Manchester City and others like Hibernian.[LNB]'But my answer to all of them was straightforward and clear - no. There are no exceptions to the rule because how can I organise my schedule when I have players flying in from different countries on different days? December 27 is the day they must report, December 28 is the day they do their tests and every single one of my players will be there for it, without exception.'[LNB]Ancelotti: His Chelsea team are top of the Premier League[LNB]Given that stance, Anelka's continued absence could not have come at a worse time for Ancelotti as Chelsea aim to bounce back from just one win in five, while they will also be without the injured midfield duo of Michael Essien and Deco.[LNB]Injuries and departures to Africa aside, Chelsea's Christmas task has not been made any easier by the fact that Birmingham have registered five wins and a draw from their last six games and Fulham are fresh from a comprehensive 3-0 win over Manchester United.[LNB]'I wasn't the only one surprised,' said Ancelotti. 'Fulham deserved to win, played very well and stayed compact for 90 minutes. To win 3-0 against United is not easy.'But then Ancelotti has a lot of respect for his Fulham counterpart Roy Hodgson and knows he will face a tactical battle on Monday.[LNB]'I've known Roy a long time,' he added. 'When I was assistant coach of Italy, I went to watch his training when he was coaching the national team in Switzerland. I stayed one week with him. He's very good at putting his team in a good tactical position. They play 4-4-2, but he's a very good teacher of this system.'[LNB]Against that system, Ancelotti wants his young strikers to grab their chances. [LNB]'Sturridge has an opportunity to show his qualities,' he said. 'He played against West Ham very well in that second half and against Birmingham he can play from the beginning.[LNB]'They're very important games. We are in a very good position. We're not in our best moment because we didn't play well in the last few games but, because of this, we have to stay concentrated and focused.[LNB]'It's important for the future. We have some problems because we have to play without Anelka, Deco and Essien but we still have possibilities to win.'[LNB]Meanwhile, Ancelotti expects new Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini to be just as successful as him in translating his skills from Serie A to the Premier League.[LNB]He said: 'He's my friend. We played in the national team maybe 20 years ago and I have a good relationship with him. He has a possibility to do very well. He is a young coach but he has a lot of experience.[LNB]'He had three years at Inter and did a very good job. They returned to win (the title) after a lot of years. He is young but he has personality and a lot of experience of football.'[LNB]Ancelotti suggested that Italian tactical acumen may be the reason why he, England manager Fabio Capello and now Mancini have attracted the attention of employers from these shores.[LNB]'Italian football is a different experience,' added Ancelotti. 'If you train in Italy, it's a good grounding. It's not only 4-4-2 in Italy. There are a lot of systems of play and you have to find a solution to combat them.'[LNB]THE TOUGHEST ACT TO FOLLOW ....Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka have contributed 22 of Chelsea's 43 league goals so far this season.[LNB]So, with both strikers set to miss Monday's West London derby against Fulham, who themselves have only conceded five goals in the last two months, it will be left to youth to fill the void left by one of Europe's deadliest strike forces.[LNB]Drogba - career appearances: 308; career goals: 170[LNB]Anelka - career appearances: 405; career goals: 157[LNB] The 18-year-old Italian striker joined Chelsea in 2007 from Bologna for an undisclosed fee. Borini was top scorer for Chelsea's reserves last season, scoring 10 goals in 11 appearances, and was rewarded with his first-team debut, replacing Nicolas Anelka in the 3-0 win over Tottenham in September.Career Appearances: 6Career Goals: 0[LNB] Nephew of former Derby striker Dean, Daniel came through the youth ranks at Eastlands, winning the FA Youth Cup in 2008 - a year after making his first team debut in February 2007 against Reading, aged 17. In all, Sturridge made 32 first-team appearances for City, scoring six goals before joining Chelsea last summer after rejecting a new contract.Career appearances: 37Career goals: 6[LNB] Anelka blow leaves Ancelotti facing life without his top three Chelsea forwardsFabio Capello is on top of the world, says Chelsea boss Carlo AncelottiCHELSEA FC NEWS FROM CROSS THE NET[LNB] [LNB]
