Source: Daily_Mail
He has tinkered in Turin, mixed it with Mourinho. . .now it’s back to the Bridge
We could call it Tinkerman 2: The Score Settler.[LNB]You know, I'll be back and this time the centre forward gets rested because he's played twice in a week and his hamstring is tight.[LNB]It has been nearly five years in the making and the plot cannot fail to deliver as the son of a Roman butcher sharpens his blades and confronts those who wronged him.[LNB] Not a prayer: Claudio Ranieri thinks Juve are up against it at Chelsea but he's still coming underfire for tinkering[LNB]Except for one thing. This is not a tale of revenge for Claudio Ranieri. [LNB]He will not be on a crusade for justice when his Juventus team visit Chelsea[LNB]next week.[LNB]In a strange way, Ranieri is pleased with the way events unfolded at Stamford Bridge. [LNB]Those who undermined his job, focused the attention of a nation on his qualities as a man. [LNB]Not everyone is so lucky.[LNB]'In one way everything was against me,'reflects the Italian. [LNB]'But in the other way it was fantastic because Chelsea fans and football supporters everywhere were all with me. [LNB]'At the last match I walked around the pitch and the players made the guard of honour for me. [LNB]'There was no tear but the emotion was at a high,high level.'[LNB]His dignity struck a chord. [LNB] Ranieri is preparing for an emotional return to Stamford Bridge[LNB] 'When I work for a club, the club is everything,'says Ranieri. [LNB]'I work for my owner with all my honesty, my passion and all my love. [LNB]'When I do this I am at peace with myself. It is up to other men to judge — Claudio yes or Claudio no. [LNB]'In football, the result is everything, but it is not.' [LNB]Branded a 'dead man walking' by Peter Kenyon, Chelsea's chief executive, Ranieri lifted his chin, puffed out his chest and his team finished second in the Barclays Premier League. [LNB]Only Arsenal's Invincibles were better in 2003-04. [LNB]Then he was sacked. He knew it was coming, but Ranieri still fails to understand the logic of Kenyon's tactics.[LNB]'Why say this?' he asks. 'It was very strange. [LNB]'You should help me win everything and then, at the end, if I don't win, send me home. [LNB]'It was clear to me from the beginning. When Roman Abramovich arrived, I said to (former chief executive) Trevor Birch 'Me and you, we'll go home'. [LNB]He said 'Why?' I said 'Because the new owner is here and he wants a new manager and a new chief executive'.[LNB]'Trevor Birch went after three months. Claudio no, because Sven Goran Eriksson didn't come. [LNB]'But I knew at the end of the season that my story was at the end.[LNB] Chelsea old boy Diarra out for revenge on Liverpool with Real[LNB]Brazilian Belletti prefers to go Dutch as he reveals Chelsea training is more fun under Guus[LNB]Mayhem in Moscow as protesters target new Chelsea boss Hiddink and Abramovich[LNB]CHELSEA FC NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB][LNB]'Of course, after you have spent time building a good team and buying good players, I wanted to finish my job. [LNB]'But it wasn't possible. That's life . He decided on Mourinho.' [LNB]Kenyon and Abramovichmet with then Porto boss Jose Mourinho in France, days before the first leg of Chelsea's Champions League semi final in Monaco.[LNB]'Roman had told me he wanted to get to know other managers and to choose and I accepted this,' says Ranieri with a shrug which says the timing made no sense. [LNB]Then again, very little did during those months.[LNB] Ranieri says he knew his number was up when Roman Abramovich (left) puumped his millions into the club[LNB]Almost five years later, at Juve's training camp in Vinovo, near Turin, Ranieri faces the Italian media wearing his shiny black bodywarmer like a flak jacket over his cashmere sweater. [LNB]He has come under fire despite solid progress at a club relegated to Serie B after Italian football's corruption scandal of 2006.[LNB]'Juventus is rebuilding, it is a new club,' says Ranieri, now in his second season there. [LNB]'We have four or five champions and all the young players. We have to rebuild the Juventus position. [LNB]'That is important. From Serie B, we arrive in Serie A. [LNB]'Last season, we arrive in the Champions League.'[LNB]This season, Juve are Inter Milan's closest title rivals but slipped nine points behind after drawing with Sampdoria on Sunday.[LNB] Ranieri admits he felt for Chelsea skipper John Terry after he missed his spot kick in last season's Champions League final[LNB]'When I started this job, I said the coach who arrives at Juventus now cannot think about winning the title,' adds Ranieri. [LNB]'Inter, Milan, Roma, Fiorentina are working for three, four, five, six years to win the title. [LNB]We are working for two.[LNB]'Supporters are divided on whether Ranieri is the man to restore former glories. [LNB]His tinkering continues to invite criticism, especially when the victim is Alessandro del Piero, darling of the fans.[LNB]Ranieri's public manner — friendly yet cautious — is familiar to those who saw his pre-Abramovich days at Stamford Bridge. [LNB]His language is similar, too: youth, patience, understanding.[LNB]'Yes, but this is different,' he insists. [LNB] Ranieri now manages Juventus, who face Chelsea in the Champions League last 16[LNB] 'Chelsea was 50 years without winning the title. Juventus no.[LNB]'Juventus is always at a high level. Juventus is one of the biggest clubs in the world. [LNB]'In its history of 111 years, it is always titles, always Champions League, always everything.[LNB]'People who realise this is a new Juventus say I do a fantastic job, but the people who think Juventus have to win everything say I do not. [LNB]'In Italy, pressure is your travel companion. You go to coach a boys' team and there is pressure.'[LNB]Ranieri is tanned and looks fit but his back is a little stiff and he gives it an exaggerated rub. [LNB]'I feel good,'he says. 'I go to the gym, the mountains are beautiful and the air is fantastic. [LNB]'In one hour you can drive and be in a good place to ski. I never ski. It is very dangerous for the knees.'[LNB]Another health hazard resides two hours to the east, in the shape of another ex-Chelsea boss, Mourinho, who has engaged in regular verbal skirmishes with Ranieri since arriving at Inter last summer.[LNB]Ranieri started it, saying he did not have to win every game to feel secure like Mourinho, who promptly retaliated, claiming the Italian was almost 70 and had won only a couple of small cups. [LNB]He was at it again last week, pouring scorn on managers who insist they need time to build a successful team.[LNB] Chelsea old boy Diarra out for revenge on Liverpool with Real[LNB]Brazilian Belletti prefers to go Dutch as he reveals Chelsea training is more fun under Guus[LNB]Mayhem in Moscow as protesters target new Chelsea boss Hiddink and Abramovich[LNB]CHELSEA FC NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB][LNB]'We had a little war, a little joking,'said Ranieri, who is actually 58. [LNB]'I don't fight. You know Mourinho, I know Mourinho but Italy didn't know Mourinho very well. [LNB]'He is OK. He made a mistake about my age, that's all. I feel 16.'[LNB]Ranieri's English is doing fine, considering his time out of the country and the problems he had conquering the language. [LNB]'It has survived, yeah, just survived,' he chuckles, then adds: 'I will survive.' [LNB]Ranieri is most at ease making jokes at his own expense, even if they don't always makes sense. [LNB] Ranieri enjoyed a great relationship with Chelsea supporters[LNB]'I don't use it much but I want to use it. I don't want to lose my poor English.[LNB]'In the future he wants to coach a national team and does not rule out a return to England. [LNB]He still owns a house in Fulham and was close to joining Manchester City [LNB]in 2007.[LNB]Ranieri explains: 'Thaksin Shinawatra wanted me and I spoke with him but every week he would say, 'Oh, it's not possible now, you have to wait another week'. [LNB]'Then,'you have to wait another week'.[LNB] Chelsea old boy Diarra out for revenge on Liverpool with Real[LNB]Brazilian Belletti prefers to go Dutch as he reveals Chelsea training is more fun under Guus[LNB]Mayhem in Moscow as protesters target new Chelsea boss Hiddink and Abramovich[LNB]CHELSEA FC NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB][LNB]'I am waiting, waiting. Then Juventus arrive and I have to say, 'I am sorry, I cannot say no to Juventus'.[LNB]'Juventus is one of the most famous teams in the world.'[LNB]If the City job had materialised, Ranieri would have soon been back in familiar territory with billionaire owners on the scene, threatening his position. [LNB]'New owners arrive and they all want to win,' says Ranieri.[LNB]'They think they will spend a lot of money and they will win. [LNB] Ranieri started Chelsea's big spending era under Abramovich with signings such us Juan Veron (right) and Joe Cole[LNB]''I pay, I win'. No, it's not possible.'[LNB]There is quiet confidence in Turin that Juve can upset the team beaten on penalties in last year's final but Ranieri wants to be the underdog.[LNB]'Chelsea will be the favourites,' he says. [LNB]'Chelsea have achieved in England but Abramovich wants to win in Europe and the world. [LNB]'They want to win everything. A lot has changed. I started the building but now the building is finished.[LNB]'Last season they are there at the end, in the final. [LNB]'It was just the last penalty. I watched it on television and I was very sorry for JT (John Terry).'[LNB] Chelsea old boy Diarra out for revenge on Liverpool with Real[LNB]Brazilian Belletti prefers to go Dutch as he reveals Chelsea training is more fun under Guus[LNB]Mayhem in Moscow as protesters target new Chelsea boss Hiddink and Abramovich[LNB]CHELSEA FC NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB][LNB]Ranieri can expect a rapturous welcome at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday from fans who appreciate his work, guiding Chelsea to fourth place in 2002-03 to clinch a Champions League place. [LNB]Without this, the Abramovich takeover and the glittering successes may never have happened.[LNB]'I have very good memories,' says Ranieri. [LNB]'I have been back two or three times to watch games and Abramovich gave me a lot of hospitality.[LNB]'He said. 'This is your house, when you want, you can come here'. [LNB]'It was fantastic for me. It is difficult to know how I feel when I take my team there but when I think of Chelsea I open my heart. [LNB]'When I think of English football, my heart is open.'[LNB] [LNB]
