Willian winner the mark of champions, says Mourinho
Willian winner the mark of champions, says
Mourinho
Chelsea manager relieved to claim win over Everton
to maintain seven-point lead
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho suggested that
Willian’s last-minute goal to give his side a 1-0
victory over Everton was the hallmark of
champions.
It looked as if Chelsea’s lead over Manchester City
at the top of the Barclays Premier League would be
cut to five points with the champions winning 4-1 at
Stoke City and Mourinho’s team being held by a
stubborn Everton defence, with the returning Tim
Howard in goal the Merseyside club’s hero.
“They were a very difficult opponent, so I am
happy with the points”
Jose Mourinho
But shortly after Everton’s Gareth Barry was sent
off for a second booking, Willian’s deflected strike in
the 89 minute beat Howard and earned Chelsea
the three points to maintain the seven-point gap.
“I don’t remember a team being champions without
a couple of victories in the last minute,” Mourinho
said. “Every time I won a league title we had a
couple of matches we won in the last minute.
“It was the first time this season. So, so happy with
the points.”
Mourinho’s team looked set to drop points at home
for only the second time this season thanks to the
visiting side’s resolve, which earned the Chelsea
manager’s praise.
“A very difficult match,” he said. “A different Everton
and when I say a different Everton it is a
compliment, it’s not a critic. They were a very
difficult opponent, so [I am] happy with the points.”
Martinez rues luck
Everton manager Roberto Martinez cursed his
team’s luck and felt that they might have inflicted
Chelsea’s first home defeat of the season in the
league but for the heroics of Petr Cech, the Blues
goalkeeper.
“We were in control,” Martinez said. “We had clear-
cut chances, the best ones of the game. They
needed world-class saves from Petr Cech.
“It’s a shame we couldn’t convert the chances. It’s
a huge disappointment. Our performance deserved
a positive result.”
Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini said he
was not thinking about catching Chelsea after his
side’s convincing win over Stoke, their first at the
Britannia Stadium in the Barclays Premier League
and their first in four league matches.
Sergio Aguero rediscovered his scoring form to
strike twice, while James Milner and Samir Nasri
got the others after Peter Crouch had made the
score 1-1.
“We needed this victory because in the last four
games we didn’t do it,” Pellegrini said. “Stoke are a
tough team. I think we scored just one goal in the
last three games against Stoke so to score four
goals here is very important for the trust of the
team. We will see if we can continue the same way
in the future.
“We are not thinking about Chelsea. If they lose
points it is good for us but the first thing for our
team is to recover the sensation of [being] a good,
solid team. That was the target and we did it.”
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