Skip to main content

Thibaut Courtois: Chelsea want to win FA Cup Final for fans, not just Antonio Conte.

Source: https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/thibaut-courtois-chelsea-want-to-win-fa-cup-final-for-fans-not-just-antonio-conte-a3840141.html

Thibaut Courtois says the Chelsea players want to win the FA Cup final for the fans after as he played down the team's desire to beat Manchester United solely for Antonio Conte.



 Conte is widely expected to leave Chelsea at the end of the season after overseeing a disappointing second campaign at Stamford Bridge in which the Blues - who won the Premier League title last term - finished in fifth place.
With many predicting that Chelsea's FA Cup final clash against United at Wembley on Saturday could be Conte's final game in charge of the west Londoners, Courtois admits the Italian and the players want to finish the season on a high but rejected the notion the squad have extra motivation because of Conte's uncertain future.
Speaking to Standard Sport, Courtois said: "Everybody is looking forward now to the Cup final. We know Sunday [when Chelsea lost 3-0 away to Newcastle] was not a good game but we knew after Wednesday [when Chelsea drew 1-1 at home to Huddersfield], it'd be difficult to even have a chance and I don't think we turned up in the right way at Newcastle.
"Obviously they wanted to finish their season well in front of their fans...we didn't do our best. We had to apologise to our fans about that and hope that on Saturday we can play a good game and win.
"I'm sure [Conte sent] a message that we have to be ready for Saturday, have a good week of work and be prepared for one last good game.
"I think almost everyone is the same here in the dressing room, we have a big motivation to win. And especially because we don't have a trophy this season. We want to win."
When then asked whether the FA Cup trophy would be the perfect way to send off Conte, Courtois replied: "It's not about the manager, we want to win for the fans and the club. 
"If you want to win trophies, firstly, it's for the fans. They come there every week to support you. We are ready for it."
Conte said following Chelsea's 2-0 FA Cup semi-final win over Southampton that the Blues would be the underdogs against United at Wembley.
But Courtois believes "everything" can happen in Cup finals, saying: "No [Chelsea are not underdogs]. I think finals are always 50-50. 
"Obviously Manchester [United] finished second this season so maybe in terms of Premier League they were higher than us but I think the Cup is a different competition. 
"Finals are always 50-50, last year we were the clear favourites to win it and we lost. In the final, everything can happen. I hope we can turn up the right way."
The last time Chelsea played United, the game ended in a 2-1 win for Jose Mourinho's side at Old Trafford.
Courtois admits the Portuguese, who he played under at Chelsea during his second spell in charge of the club, "always has surprises" in terms of his team selection and set-up and predicts an entertaining and tight final on Saturday.
"He always has surprises in the games he has played against us," the Belgian added. "He has different systems to play. Sometimes he played three at the back, sometimes four. He will always find something...
"I think it'll be a good game, lots of familiar faces on both sides. I hope it'll be a good game with Chelsea as the winner. 
"We can know a little bit how he set up in the last two years against us, but that's it."

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Peru's Andre Carrillo bitter at World Cup exit: 'We're better than Denmark'

Source:  http://global.espn.com/football/peru/story/3545712/perus-andre-carrillo-bitter-at-world-cup-exit-were-better-than-denmark Peru were already out of the World Cup before they beat Australia 2-0 on Tuesday but the victory was not enough to shake a bitter taste in the mouth of man of the match Andre Carrillo. The winger scored a lovely first-half goal and was a constant threat to Australia's bigger and burlier defenders. However, losses in Peru's first two Group C games to France and Denmark doomed the South Americans to an early exit from Russia. "We knew it would be hard but we showed we have a high level of football," Carrillo said. "We are slightly bitter because we're better than Denmark and at times we were even better than France. Now we just need to look to the future and our next objectives." "I would rather play worse and qualify but right now Peru is happy with us and we need to continue to work," he added. "We ar...
Post a Comment
Read more

Iceland exit World Cup 'proud' but with 'no percentage left in batteries' - Hallgrimsson

Source:  http://www.espn.com/soccer/iceland/story/3546378/iceland-exit-world-cup-proud-but-with-no-percentage-left-in-batteries-hallgrimsson ROSTOV-ON-DON, Russia -- Iceland manager Heimir Hallgrimsson admitted his 'proud' team's 'batteries' were on empty following a 2-1 World Cup-ending loss to Croatia on Tuesday. World Cup debutants Iceland proved they can compete against the top teams and will depart Russia with their heads held high even if they failed to win a single game, Hallgrimsson said after the match. The smallest nation by population ever to qualify for the tournament, Iceland's giant-killing performances in Euro 2016 sent an early warning that they would not be in Russia just to make up the numbers. They began their campaign brightly with a 1-1 draw against Lionel Messi's Argentina but that would be their only point as they finished bottom of Group D. "We have not played many games like this against a strong team like Croatia an...
Post a Comment
Read more

Wild 2-2 draw enough for Swiss to advance

Source:  https://www.cbssports.com/soccer/world-cup/news/switzerland-vs-costa-rica-final-score-recap-wild-2-2-draw-enough-for-swiss-to-advance/ For 90 minutes, Switzerland and Costa Rica exchanged scoring opportunities, frisky attacks, and countless missed chances at Nizhny Novgorod Stadium in an entertaining back-and-forth match that came down to an 88th minute go-ahead goal, an overturned penalty kick decision, and a stoppage time, game-tying penalty-kick goal that only counted because the ball deflected off the crossbar and Switzerland goalkeeper Yann Sommer's head before rolling into the net. Due to what unfolded at Spartak Stadium between Serbia and Brazil, what happened between Switzerland and Costa Rica didn't ended up mattering much. On Wednesday, Switzerland and Costa Rica battled to a thrilling 2-2 draw that involved two goals in the final minutes. The result was enough for Switzerland to gain entrance into the knockout stages of the World Cup. Even if Switze...
Post a Comment
Read more