Source: Daily_Mail
Carlo Ancelotti plays down protest as Chelsea boss looks to reverse poor form
Carlo Ancelotti today laughed off a fan protest calling for him to be sacked as Chelsea manager, insisting such demonstrations were much worse in Italy.[LNB]Ancelotti and his players arrived at their Cobham base this morning to find a pair of banners draped opposite the entrance which read: 'Ancelotti + Abramovich out!!!' and 'None of you are fit to wear the shirt'.[LNB]The signs, presumably the handiwork of a Chelsea supporter disgruntled at the club's worst Barclays Premier League slump for almost 15 years, were later removed.[LNB] Protest: Banners outside Chelsea's training ground demanding both manager Carlo Ancelotti and owner Roman Abromovitch leave the club and another suggesting that none of the players are fit to wear the shirt[LNB]And they are unlikely to be representative of the majority of fans' views, allowing Ancelotti to make light of the protest.[LNB]'There was only one?' joked the Italian, who masterminded Chelsea's first ever league and FA Cup double last season. 'If it's only one, there's no problem!'[LNB]He added: 'Here, you saw outside just one person who is not happy.[LNB]'In Italy, it's different. You can find outside the training ground 1,000 people not happy. It's difficult to fight with 1,000. With one, you can manage.'[LNB]Of course, any disquiet is likely to grow the longer Chelsea's current crisis continues.[LNB]But for the moment, Ancelotti appears to have the bulk of the fans on side, including the most important of them all, owner Roman Abramovich.[LNB]The billionaire Russian is continuing to back his manager, despite the Italian overseeing by far the poorest run of results since he bought the club.[LNB]Wednesday night's shock 1-0 defeat at then rock-bottom Wolves made it one win in nine league games, leaving Chelsea marooned in fifth place.[LNB]'For a manager, it is important at this moment to have the support of the club, of the players, and obviously of the fans - minus one,' said Ancelotti, referring again to the solitary protest.[LNB]What's going on: Chelsea's alarming slump continued in mid-week, losing to relegation candidates Wolves[LNB] 'It is the right way to move on quickly. The problem now here is not the relationship with the club, or with the owner, or with the players.[LNB]'The problem is the team is not doing well. We've stayed a long time in a difficult moment, we've lost confidence. [LNB]'We spoke today with the staff to try to find the solution. The solution is on the pitch - it is not outside the pitch.'[LNB]Ancelotti acknowledged that solution needed to be found 'now', starting with Sunday's FA Cup third-round tie with Ipswich.[LNB]'We obviously have to do quickly this change,' he said.[LNB]'And not because the club will not give the support to me, but because we want to stay involved in every competition.[LNB]'I think it's a good thing to play the FA Cup, because we have a good memory of this competition.[LNB]'We won last year and maybe we can have help from this competition.The good thing is in the FA Cup and Champions League, we don't have a gap to close.[LNB]'We have the same possibility as the other teams and maybe this could give us more motivation.'[LNB]He added: 'We are trying to do something different on the pitch. But it doesn't mean that we want to change the shape.'[LNB] Problem solved: Ancelotti believes John Terry and his Chelsea team-mates can solve their current crisis on the pitch[LNB]It also does not mean panic buys, according to the former AC Milan boss, who is keen to strengthen his squad but to supplement, rather than supplant his struggling stars.[LNB]'We started very well this season, with this squad,' said Ancelotti, whose side led the table by five points back in October.[LNB]'Everyone was excited to watch our games, was excited to speak about our players, and how we played.[LNB]'I think that these players are able to move on with their quality, with their character, with their personality. We don't need to have the support from any (new) players.'[LNB]New players or not, Ancelotti is acutely aware the buck will eventually stop with him.[LNB]'In football, you usually say when everything is okay, the players are fantastic,' he said.[LNB]'When everything is wrong, it is the manager who is not so good. When the moment is not good, we have to take responsibility.[LNB]'I feel in this moment more responsibility than my players. This is normal, this is not a worry for me.'[LNB] The £10m cost of axing of Ancelotti means Chelsea boss will get timeChelsea receive nearly £500k in World Cup compensation from FIFA The Firing Line: Grant's time is up as axe looms over Hodgson and AncelottiAll the latest Chelsea news, features and opinion [LNB] Explore more:People: Roman Abramovich, Carlo Ancelotti Places: Italy
