Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas is said to have had a less-than-friendly meeting with his players on Sunday, where he was reportedly slammed for his tactics.
Chelsea slumped to fifth in the Barclays Premier League over the weekend after losing 2-0 to Everton, a performance which Villas-Boas described as one of his side's worst of the season.
In the aftermath of that defeat, the Chelsea tactician cancelled his players' day off on Sunday and hauled them in for a gruelling training session.
And according to the Daily Mail, the players reportedly confronted their manager and criticised him for his tactics.
This latest incident is yet another blot on what has so far been an unhappy spell in charge of Chelsea for Villas-Boas, after he arrived at Stamford Bridge from Porto in the summer tipped to lead the club to European glory.
Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has also been reportedly spotted at the club's Cobham training ground on a more frequent basis recently, leading to rumours he is genuinely concerned with the Blues' performance under Villas-Boas.
To make matters worse for the 34-year-old tactician, some sections of the Stamford Bridge faithful are calling for the return of Guus Hiddink, who managed the club in a caretaker role back in 2009 and led them to the FA Cup.
Hiddink has since ended his association with the Turkey national team, paving the way for a return to Chelsea.
Arsenal legend Ian Wright is one who fears Villas-Boas could be the next Premier League manager to get the sack, and he expressed in his The Sun column.
"Only three managers have been sacked this season, which is quite low, but I fear casualty number four could not be too far away," Wright wrote. "And it's certainly not looking good for Andre Villas-Boas.
"It's a worrying sign that owner Roman Abramovich is appearing at the training ground. He won't enjoy seeing his side sitting in fifth place - 17 points behind [league leaders] Manchester City.
"There are big personalities in the dressing room, Chelsea's league results have been poor while we know the owner is trigger happy."
Villas-Boas will be looking to get back to winning ways on Saturday when they take on Birmingham in the FA Cup, before they travel to Naples next Tuesday for a crucial Champions League encounter against Napoli.
Post a Comment