Carlo Ancelotti impressed by Spurs' strong start to the season

18 September 2009 18:55
At the start of the campaign Ancelotti was asked to name Chelsea's trophy rivals and reeled off the usual suspects of Manchester United, Liverpool Arsenal, plus the arrivistes of Manchester City, but neglected to count in Spurs. However Ancelotti now admits: "I made a mistake because Tottenham started the season very well. They played very well against Liverpool in the first game. I was impressed by this play and the quality of the forwards. They have very good quality in attacking positions and they have the possibility of finishing in a high up position." The two sides meet at Stamford Bridge on Sunday. Rivals at the top of the table, with Chelsea top and Tottenham fourth, they are also derby rivals. Being a veteran of such encounters in Rome (where it can be nasty) and Milan (more civilised), Ancelotti is already well versed in the importance of the fixture. "There are a lot of teams in London, so when I arrived I asked which one was the real derby," he said. "All the English players told me it was Tottenham. So we want to prepare this like a derby. We want to give joy to our fans for this specific match." One of those English players is Joe Cole and although he has recovered from his knee injury, which has ruled him out since January, he will not figure. He will play in Wednesday's Carling Cup tie at home to Queens Park Rangers instead, when Ancelotti hopes to also give a competitive debut to Yuri Zhirkov. Beating Spurs has become a custom for Chelsea but although they have taken more points off them than any other Premier League club – and a win tomorrow would set a club record of 11 straight league victories – there has been a shift over the past two seasons. Spurs are unbeaten in the last four encounters and, having lost to Manchester United last Saturday, will be desperate to avoid defeat again. "I said at the start of the season, we had to control the season of Man City," Ancelotti said. "They have started very well and now we need to control the season of Tottenham also. It's a championship that's very balanced." Six wins from six matches so far, including a Champions League tie, has represented a perfect start for the Italian but he is hoping to "improve the distance between us and second place" in the coming weeks. The manager in being careful over Cole, as he has one eye on January's African Cup of Nations and knows Chelsea cannot do any transfer business for the next two windows. But they are planning ahead. A deal is in place to sign 17-year-old goalkeeper Matej Delac from the Croatian club Inter Zapresic, for £2 million, in January 2011. "We think he can be a very good keeper in the future," Ancelotti said. "Now he will stay in Croatia to play and next season he will come to us. We've agreed an option to buy him." He said he was confident that the deal did not breach the Fifa ban. "We put a lot of attention to the young players in every part of the world," he said. "If it's possible to take them, we want to do this." That deal will have been brokered by Chelsea's sporting director, Frank Arnesen, who is the board's main liaison with Ancelotti. Asked whether he regretted the imminent departure of Peter Kenyon, Ancelotti confirmed he had had negligible dealings with the outgoing chief executive. "Peter Kenyon did a good job for the club. I don't know him well but we spoke a few times," he said.

Source: Telegraph