Chelsea striker Didier Drogba has urged the players at the club to rally around under fire manager Andre Villas Boas.
The Stamford Bridge club have had an inconsistent campaign thus-far, and defeats to QPR, Arsenal, Bayer Leverkusen and Liverpool twice have landed the Portuguese coach under pressure.
As the Premier League side go into their crucial Champions League tie with Valencia in midweek, the Ivory Coast international has called for solidairty in the squad.
“You have to remember it’s the manager’s first season in the Premier League, it’s not easy for him and it isn’t easy for the players or the club,” he stated to The Guardian.
“But everything is coming together for the manager. He can deal with any pressure. You don’t rise to his level in coaching if you are not strong.
“Yes we’ve been in a difficult moment but you have to stick together and make sure that, when we are on the pitch, we are all pulling in the same direction. That’s what we are doing right now and it’s great to see.
“Against Newcastle we looked more like the Chelsea of old, doing the simple things well. You create your own luck sometimes but that only comes from the whole team being in a really positive state of mind. We’ll have more bad moments but, if we stay together, good things will come along.
“We face Valencia with confidence,” he concluded.
Drogba’s statements come in the wake of both Nicolas Anelka and Alex handing in transfer requests at Stamford Bridge.
By Gareth McKnight
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