Chelsea boss Villas-Boas insists he still has Abramovich’s support

Andre Villas-Boas has once again insisted he has the full backing of Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, despite the Blues having fallen short of expectations in the Premier League.

Chelsea’s 2-0 defeat at Everton on Saturday, their sixth league defeat of the season, saw the west Londoners drop down to fifth place in the table.

But amid reports of unrest amongst some of his squad ahead of their FA Cup fifth-round clash with Birmingham at Stamford Bridge, Villas-Boas stressed that he still has Abramovich’s support.

“The players don’t have to back my project, it’s the owner who backs my project,” Villas-Boas told a news conference on Thursday. “I think the owner has full trust in me and we’ll continue to progress with the ideas that we have.

“In the end, we have the objective of getting the best position possible in the league. It would be extremely good for us if we win against Birmingham to put ourselves in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup.

“[The display at Everton] was for sure our worst performance of the season. I wouldn’t say that it was a pure reflection of what Chelsea has been doing in the past few weeks. In terms of results we can’t be satisfied because they haven’e been happening for quite some time.

“We are trying had to improve results. I think our fans deserve a reaction from us. We’re not happy with the current results and we want to give the fans something to cheer about because it hasn’t been happening for us. So we will focus on trying to get the performances right.”

Villas-Boas admits that a top-four finish is the minimum requirement for his side as they bid to secure Champions League football for next season.

“We are fifth in the league and it’s not up to our level, so everybody must push hard,” he continued.

“As tight as things are from fourth to seventh, the positions in the league will change on a weekly basis. It doesn’t become more or less dramatic as clubs jump from fourth to seventh. That is the reality. There is damage limitation for us, like I told you last week – and that is Champions League qualification.

“We are in the running for two trophies which not a lot of teams are and we have to focus on them.”

Meanwhile, Villas-Boas brushed off suggestions that his authority at Chelsea was being undermined by some of his squad continuing to keep in contact with former Blues boss Jose Mourinho.

“I think it’s normal,” Villas-Boas added. “I have emotional attachment to the people I’ve managed in Academica and Porto. I text them, and they text back.

“I think it’s pretty normal for managers to have relationships with players they’ve managed before. I have no problem with it.”