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Chelsea defender Alex compares Stoke City to a Dutch side
27-year-old is familiar with direct approach from time at PSV Eindhoven...
5 Mar 2010 13:06:00
By Alex Dimond
Chelsea centre-back Alex believes Stoke City's playing style is similar to that of many Dutch sides.
An injury to Ricardo Carvalho means the Brazilian is likely to face the Potters in their FA Cup quarter-final clash on Sunday, and the 27-year-old believes his time spent in Holland with PSV Eindhoven will help him cope with the challenge.
"When I came to England I thought only Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United liked to play, all the other teams I thought would be long ball, but after some time I knew only two or three teams play like this and the rest of the teams like to play," Alex told Chelsea's official website.
"In Holland it is the same as Stoke, and Bolton too, there are many teams who have tall forwards and put the ball in the air and play like this. They don't have the good quality like Stoke have also."
Assistant manager Ray Wilkins pin-pointed the "tremendous delivery" of Rory Delap's throw-ins as a key danger for the Blues, and Alex agrees that the defence will have to be fully prepared for the challenge.
"We have to pay attention to the second ball, sometimes it is difficult to win the first ball but you have to win the second," Alex explained.
"You have to play very concentrated and stay compact."
The defender, who won three league titles at PSV, believes striker Ricardo Fuller has the ability to cause problems.
"Fuller has quality with the ball and he is a strong, strong man, so we have to play strong also and don't leave any space," he said.
"We received four goals in the last game [against Manchester City], which is no good at home."
An injury to Ricardo Carvalho means the Brazilian is likely to face the Potters in their FA Cup quarter-final clash on Sunday, and the 27-year-old believes his time spent in Holland with PSV Eindhoven will help him cope with the challenge.
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"When I came to England I thought only Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United liked to play, all the other teams I thought would be long ball, but after some time I knew only two or three teams play like this and the rest of the teams like to play," Alex told Chelsea's official website.
"In Holland it is the same as Stoke, and Bolton too, there are many teams who have tall forwards and put the ball in the air and play like this. They don't have the good quality like Stoke have also."
Assistant manager Ray Wilkins pin-pointed the "tremendous delivery" of Rory Delap's throw-ins as a key danger for the Blues, and Alex agrees that the defence will have to be fully prepared for the challenge.
"We have to pay attention to the second ball, sometimes it is difficult to win the first ball but you have to win the second," Alex explained.
"You have to play very concentrated and stay compact."
The defender, who won three league titles at PSV, believes striker Ricardo Fuller has the ability to cause problems.
"Fuller has quality with the ball and he is a strong, strong man, so we have to play strong also and don't leave any space," he said.
"We received four goals in the last game [against Manchester City], which is no good at home."
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| Open an account with Sportingbet today and get up to £50 in free bets! |
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| Sign up with William Hill for a free bet up to £25 |
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| Sign up with bet365 for a free bet up to £200 |
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| Sign up with Paddy Power - Bet £10, Get £20! |
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