Mata has faith in Villas-Boas
November 28, 2011 13:35:58 UK
Andre Villas-Boas has the full backing of the Chelsea players, according to Juan Mata.Juan Mata has become the latest Chelsea star to offer his backing to under-fire boss Andre Villas-Boas.
The Portuguese coach has come in for criticism with the Blues way off the pace in the battle for the Premier League title, although they did close the gap by two points at the weekend as Manchester City were held at Liverpool, while Chelsea saw off Wolves.
Villas-Boas' side now trail City by 10 points, with City 1.10 to secure the title and Chelsea priced at 1001.00.
However, ahead of Liverpool's Carling Cup quarter-final visit on Tuesday Mata has spoken out in defence of his manager.
"It's never easy to have such negative results but we all have a lot of faith in ourselves as a team, we have a lot of faith in our coach and in the quality of the squad," said the Spaniard, who helped himself to a goal against Wolves on Saturday.
"We had a team meeting last week simply to reiterate that we are all together and that we are heading in the same direction, and we showed that against Wolves.
"The group has always been very united and we have always been sure the secret in enjoying more success as we go forward, in getting out of this moment, has been to stay strong and stay together."
Both Liverpool and Chelsea are expected to ring the changes for their Carling Cup showdown as the Blues seek revenge for their home defeat to the Anfield outfit on November 20.
Chelsea are 2.10 to get the better of Liverpool on Tuesday, while the Reds are 3.60 to grab a second win at Stamford Bridge in nine days.
Mata seems set to be rested, as does Didier Drogba and Daniel Sturridge, meaning Salomon Kalou, Florent Malouda and former Reds striker Fernando Torres are expected to start.
Liverpool striker Andy Carroll is in line to start after coming off the bench in the draw with Manchester City on Sunday and youngsters Martin Kelly and Jay Spearing are also expected to be included in the starting 11.
Don't forget all Premier League matches are covered by the bet365 100% Euro Soccer Bonus, where you could earn a bonus of up to 100% on your returns on pre-match accumulator bets.
View all Soccer betting