Chelsea manager Andre Villas Boas has praised his side’s commitment against Everton on Wednesday evening after the Stamford Bridge side once again went down to 10 men.
A 117th minute winner by Daniel Sturridge saw Chelsea through to the quarter finals and Villas Boas felt his side had enough desire to win the match and believes this to be a good sign for what lies ahead.
“We went down to 10 men, unfortunately, once again and made things even more difficult but we were able to triumph in difficulty and these are good signs for us, we got one of the most difficult draws, Everton away with one of their strongest sides. They showed they wanted to go through this phase but we were able, not only to play good football, but show good commitment and desire.”
The 34 year old Chelsea manager continued:
“Everton had the desire and motivation, they were on top and we had to hold on until extra time arrived. What satisfies more is the talent came out in this situation and when the numbers got even they found better spaces and we got the goal we wanted.”
Villas Boas also felt it necessary to dedicate the win to captain John Terry who did not feature in the match due to the centre-back having collected four yellow cards and the manager not wishing to risk a fifth in the Carling Cup. Terry is also currently involved in a racism row featuring Anton Ferdinand which is currently being investigated.
“The spirit of the players took us through. I think all of the players would like to dedicate the win to John Terry.”