|
|
Chelsea assistant manager Roberto Di Matteo concedes FA Cup drubbing over Portsmouth was harsh
Three late goals from the Premier League side added gloss to the scoreline, and Pompey's Michael Appleton laments 'clinical' difference not shown by his Championship side
8 Jan 2012 20:40:00
By Joe Doyle at Stamford Bridge
Chelsea assistant manager Roberto Di Matteo has conceded his side's 4-0 victory over Portsmouth in the FA Cup third round was 'harsh'.
A goal from Juan Mata early after the break opened the scoring, but the hosts were made to wait until the 84th minute to grab their second through Ramires, before the Brazilian added a classy third and Frank Lampard completed the win with a strike in injury time.
Portsmouth had come close with John Terry clearing a header off the line before colliding with the post, after Marko Futacs had seen his shot well saved by Petr Cech.
"I think it was a bit harsh on Portsmouth," Di Matteo admitted. "Especially the way they organised and defended. But we're very pleased with it, and we deserved a little bit of goals as well.
"I thought it was an all-round very good performance. Portsmouth made it very hard, especially in the first 45 minutes.
"It's always difficult to break an opponent down and find the spaces in the defence when you are dealing with so many players, it was just a matter of scoring the first goal.
"But we were always confident that we were going to be able to do that and score the second or third and fourth.
"I think it was a matter of finding the spaces and keeping the possession, and the chances were going to come - that's exactly what happened in the second half.
"It helps [to have Ramires scoring from midfield]. I don't think he's the only one, I mean we have a few goalscoring midfield players - but I very much enjoyed his second goal today."
Di Matteo also confirmed that an injury to John Terry - picked up after colliding with the post was an isolated incident, and not linked to the knee injury which required him to complete a fitness test on Saturday.
"After [John Terry] cleared the ball off the line, he collided with the goal post, but he's fine. Fortunately we don't have any [other injuries from today]."
Di Matteo also kept quiet about various transfer rumours involving the club, including the proposed deal to take Gary Cahill from Bolton, a loan move for Josh McEachran, and possible Arsenal interest in Salomon Kalou.
"[The Cahill deal] I don't know about it. I'm not in the loop. I know it's still ongoing but I'm not sure when it's going to happen.
"At the moment [Josh McEachran] is with us, and we'll see how far the developments are in the next few weeks.
"[And with Kalou] I know that he's at the African Nations Cup and in a pre-tournament camp in Abu Dhabi with his nation - that's all I know."
Portsmouth manager Michael Appleton lamented the lack of a clinical edge to his side but agreed that the scoreline flattered the Premier League team.
"It's possibly [a bit harsh]. Conceding after two or three minutes [in the second half] after a good display in the first half doesn't help," he said.
"But I thought we got ourselves back into the game. I could sense a bit of nervousness though before their second goal, and that's why Chelsea are where they are and we're a Championship club.
"You've got to take the positives from the game. After conceding so early in the second half we could have easily caived in, but the first five minutes after conceding - especially against a Premier League team - are crucial and we stayed solid.
"We started to press really high up the pitch, and we had three fantastic opportunities. But some good defending and some good goalkeeping - and a little bit of difference in therms of the clinical side between the Championship and Premier League level - stopped us.
"You've only got to look at Ramires' finish where he dinked the ball over Stephen Hendersen. A similar type of finish by young Marko [Futacs] and we may have been rewarded. But that's why we are where we are."
|
Sign up with 188BET for a FREE bet up to £25 – Great Prices, Every Game |
|
Open an account with Sportingbet today and get up to £50 in free bets! |
|
Sign up with William Hill for a free bet up to £25 |
|
Sign up with bet365 for a free bet up to £200 |
|
Sign up with Paddy Power - Bet £10, Get £20! |
A goal from Juan Mata early after the break opened the scoring, but the hosts were made to wait until the 84th minute to grab their second through Ramires, before the Brazilian added a classy third and Frank Lampard completed the win with a strike in injury time.
Portsmouth had come close with John Terry clearing a header off the line before colliding with the post, after Marko Futacs had seen his shot well saved by Petr Cech.
"I think it was a bit harsh on Portsmouth," Di Matteo admitted. "Especially the way they organised and defended. But we're very pleased with it, and we deserved a little bit of goals as well.
"I thought it was an all-round very good performance. Portsmouth made it very hard, especially in the first 45 minutes.
"It's always difficult to break an opponent down and find the spaces in the defence when you are dealing with so many players, it was just a matter of scoring the first goal.
"But we were always confident that we were going to be able to do that and score the second or third and fourth.
"I think it was a matter of finding the spaces and keeping the possession, and the chances were going to come - that's exactly what happened in the second half.
"It helps [to have Ramires scoring from midfield]. I don't think he's the only one, I mean we have a few goalscoring midfield players - but I very much enjoyed his second goal today."
Di Matteo also confirmed that an injury to John Terry - picked up after colliding with the post was an isolated incident, and not linked to the knee injury which required him to complete a fitness test on Saturday.
"After [John Terry] cleared the ball off the line, he collided with the goal post, but he's fine. Fortunately we don't have any [other injuries from today]."
Di Matteo also kept quiet about various transfer rumours involving the club, including the proposed deal to take Gary Cahill from Bolton, a loan move for Josh McEachran, and possible Arsenal interest in Salomon Kalou.
"[The Cahill deal] I don't know about it. I'm not in the loop. I know it's still ongoing but I'm not sure when it's going to happen.
"At the moment [Josh McEachran] is with us, and we'll see how far the developments are in the next few weeks.
"[And with Kalou] I know that he's at the African Nations Cup and in a pre-tournament camp in Abu Dhabi with his nation - that's all I know."
Portsmouth manager Michael Appleton lamented the lack of a clinical edge to his side but agreed that the scoreline flattered the Premier League team.
"It's possibly [a bit harsh]. Conceding after two or three minutes [in the second half] after a good display in the first half doesn't help," he said.
"But I thought we got ourselves back into the game. I could sense a bit of nervousness though before their second goal, and that's why Chelsea are where they are and we're a Championship club.
"You've got to take the positives from the game. After conceding so early in the second half we could have easily caived in, but the first five minutes after conceding - especially against a Premier League team - are crucial and we stayed solid.
"We started to press really high up the pitch, and we had three fantastic opportunities. But some good defending and some good goalkeeping - and a little bit of difference in therms of the clinical side between the Championship and Premier League level - stopped us.
"You've only got to look at Ramires' finish where he dinked the ball over Stephen Hendersen. A similar type of finish by young Marko [Futacs] and we may have been rewarded. But that's why we are where we are."
| Sign up with 188BET for a FREE bet up to £25 – Great Prices, Every Game |
|
| Open an account with Sportingbet today and get up to £50 in free bets! |
|
| Sign up with William Hill for a free bet up to £25 |
|
| Sign up with bet365 for a free bet up to £200 |
|
| Sign up with Paddy Power - Bet £10, Get £20! |
|
Inside Goal.Com
-
Welbeck convinces Hodgson he is the man to lead the line
England beat Norway 1-0 at Wembley, with the Manchester United man hitting an impressive winner to stake his claim for a starting spot at Euro 2012
-
How England player's chances were affected by Belgium victory
Ashley Young all but secured his place in the starting line-up against France while captain Steven Gerrard put a good shift in. Joe Hart, however, needs to remain focused
-
In Pictures: The best and worst kits at Euro 2012
The European Championship is just around the corner and Goal.com distinguishes between the trendy and the passe at the prestigious tournament
-
Managerial merry-go-round keeps spinning as Lambert takes Villa job
The Scot officially left Norwich City on Saturday to become the second new boss in June, following the appointment of Brendan Rodgers at Liverpool on Friday
-
Hungary - Republic of Ireland Preview
Veteran Italian coach takes his Irish side to Újpest in Hungary for their last warm-up match before their highly-anticipated Euro 2012 opener against Group C rivals Croatia
