Chelsea On Alert As Neymar Goes Off The Rails With Santos

Chelsea may have to reconsider their pursuit of Brazilian wonderkid Neymar, who has been fined by Santos and ordered to work with a psychologist after a series of worrying episodes.

The 18-year-old opted to sign a new contract with Santos rather than move to England last month, but his advisers expected a new bid from the Barclays Premier League champions next summer.

However, Neymar has since been accused of petulant and reckless behaviour, culminating in a foul-mouthed outburst against his manager on Wednesday night.

The gifted forward also argued with captain Edu Dracena on the pitch after being told not to take a penalty kick and he is said to have then refused to pass the ball to any of his team-mates during the closing stages of 4-2 win against Atletico-GO.

Santos boss Dorival Junior was visibly shaken after the game and said: 'In seven years as a coach, I've never had such a problem with indiscipline.

'It is a difficult problem, grave, serious and will require effort from us all. At all times we feel that an act of indiscipline, whether from Neymar or a boy from academy, we will punish it.

'I love him, but there was a new event. We will have to act the same way (as always).'

Santos subsequently fined their starlet an undisclosed amount and in a statement warned: 'The club will demand deep changes in his behaviour on and off the field, with his colleagues and opponents and will support the player so this moment of difficulty can be overcome.'

Neymar's father admits that seeing a psychologist could help a player who has gone from happy-go-lucky teenager to a world star in a short space of time.

Dorival Junior added: 'I don't know what is happening to him. I'm trying everything I can to help. From the moment he is out of my reach, I don't know (what happens).

'The directors are finalizing details to hire that worker (a psychologist). I think that it will be interesting and beneficial.'

The coach has previously defended Neymar against criticism, but the player's crimesheet is growing at an alarming rate.

At the weekend he caused a mass on-pitch fracas by standing on the foot of a Ceara defender because he felt targeted.

In May he was left out of a match and ordered to do extra training for breaking a curfew by four hours when celebrating a team-mates' birthday.

Last month he escaped punishment from disciplinary chiefs after he accused a referee of being a thief in a post on Twitter. He argued his page was hacked, but his father has threatened a ban on his Twitter account.

Finally realizing the error of his ways, Neymar apologized after learning his punishment.

'I'm here to say more than sorry and (I expect) no pardon,' he said, almost in tears. 'I acted wrongly, I left even my father and mother shocked. I'm ashamed of what happened.

'I say sorry to Dorival, sorry to Edu, who is the team captain, and to my team mates. I apologize to kids who look up to Neymar. Forgive me for what I did.'

Atletico-GO boss Rene Simoes, who witnessed the outburst against Dorival Junior warned that Brazilian football was creating a monster, while team-mates and the Santos home crowd also rounded on him.

New Brazil boss Mano Menezes handed Neymar an international debut in August, but warns he must get his act together.

'He needs to know how to behave as a stand-out player in Brazilian football and later out there in world football,' said Menezes.

'If we allow these (things) to happen with such frequency in his club, in no time it will get transferred to the Brazil team.'

Malouda Hails Chelsea's Finishing

Florent Malouda has hailed Chelsea's goalscoring prowess as they focus on a return to Premier League action against new-boys Blackpool at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.

Chelsea took their goal tally for the season to 21 in five games with a 4-1 away victory against MSK Zilina in the Champions League on Wednesday night.

The Blues scored 142 goals in all competitions last season, including 103 in the Premier League, and Malouda says their ability to score throughout the team is one of the keys to their success.

"I think that's our strength, we play a system where everybody knows what he has to do and players come in and out and the result is still the same," said Malouda.

"Everybody can score and it is difficult for the opponents. We have to maintain that good atmosphere and keep our focus because we play every competition to win, obviously it will be difficult but we have to be really hungry.

"We're playing good football but every game is different and at the end we made scoring look easy but we just try to start each game playing well first and look for an opportunity. That's what we did."

Malouda also insists the Blues are destined to win the Champions League this season because the final is being played at their 'lucky' Wembley Stadium.

Chelsea have won three out of the last four FA Cup finals at the national stadium and the France international is confident the Blues will return to Wembley at the end of the campaign to lift the top prize in European club football.

"It is a sign for us that the Champions League final is being played at Wembley," declared Malouda.

"We have won there a lot in recent years and it's a big objective for the club. Our aim is to be there again in May and to win.

"We love playing there as we have shown by winning three FA Cups in the last four years. We have a good feeling every time we go there and maybe it is our destiny to be there in May.

"That's what I wish and every player in the squad is thinking about that in their minds. We have to be ready to get through the group phase now but we have to be ready for the knockout phase as well."

Chelsea's win over Zilina was a stroll for Carlo Ancelotti's side. A brace from Nicolas Anelka and another from Michael Essien put the Blues in command at the interval and Daniel Sturridge made it 4-0 three minutes after the break.

Zilina, to their credit, continued to fight on and Tomas Oravec scored a consolation goal when Petr Cech failed to hold a cross.

Ancelotti was clearly not happy with their second-half performance and Malouda agreed they were "sloppy".

"We controlled the game in the first half but we didn't play at our best level in the second and were a bit sloppy," he added.

"We have to be aware we can't afford to play like we did in the second half. We want to finish first in the group stage. It is really important for the draw."

Carlo Backs Euro Campaign

Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti believes this season could be the year they finally win the elusive UEFA Champions League trophy.

The Blues have been virtual ever-presents in Europe's illustrious club competition without being able to get their hands on the silverware.

Once again the Champions League is high on the club's priority list and they have started in fine fashion with a 4-1 win over MSK Zilina.

Ancelotti believes Chelsea have matured and are now ready to not only reach the semi-finals of the competition but to be victorious in the final.

The Italian is also delighted to have a fully fit Michael Essien back in the ranks, labelling his availability as better than any summer signing.

"Chelsea has the maturity to win the Champions League in this season," Ancelotti told Sky Italia. "It is the cup that is lacking at this club.

"There's a particular attention towards this tournament as Chelsea has reached the semi-finals five times in the last seven years.

"The season's started well and fortunately we still have room for improvement.

"Chelsea's best purchase? I think Essien is better than a new player. We missed him last season because he is one of the world's best midfielders.

"We are pleased he immediately returned to his levels. He found his fitness and I hope that he retains it for the whole season."

Chelsea Game Was A Footballing Lesson - Zilina Coach Pavel Hapal

Slovakian side Zilina started their Champions League campaign with a home match against Chelsea, but they were unable to cause an upset. Head coach Pavel Hapal wasn't too disappointed with his side's 4-1 loss though and was quick to admit that Zilina were taught a footballing lesson.

"We have to remember that Chelsea are one of the best teams in the world and they played very well tonight. They made very quick moves and were very clinical," Hapal was quoted as saying by uefa.com.

"That was the main difference between the teams, because we matched them at times. You could see there is a huge difference between the teams, especially in terms of pace and passing. Everybody can see what quality they have.

"For us it was a footballing lesson; we saw the way the modern game is going. We lost, but I am not disappointed. We lost to a stronger team. It's a shame we didn't get a second goal, because we had a few chances to score again."

McEachran In The Record Books!

Carlo promised that this would be the season that youth would be given its chance and last night he didn’t let us down.

With Daniel Sturridge leading the attack, and scoring, we were later treated to cameo appearances from three of our most promising youngsters.

Gael Kakuta was the first of the three youngsters, from the bench to make an appearance, closely followed by Josh McEachran.

Neither of the duo looked out of place and with minutes to go Patrick van Aanholt joined the fray.

Now although there wasn’t perhaps sufficient time for any of the three to make a dramatic change to the game, especially with Chelsea in cruise mode having secured the three points, Josh can rest assured that his appearance has made the record books.

Apparently, young Josh is the first player to feature in the competition (Champions League) who was born after its inception in 1992.

Now that can’t be bad can it!

Reserves Report: Newcastle United 2 - 3 Chelsea

A double from Milan Lalkovic and a last-gasp Adam Phillip penalty earned Chelsea reserves an excellent win against Newcastle at St. James' Park.

The young Blues, missing several who had travelled to Zilina for the Champions League game on Wednesday, fell behind in the second minute but reacted well after a barrage of pressure to overturn the deficit, the nippy Lalkovic twice keeping his cool to slot home, only for a Newcastle equalizer to come in the second half.

It looked like it would finish level, and in truth it was probably Newcastle who had edged it, only for substitute Phillip, playing his first competitive reserve game in a year after injury, to race through and attract a foul by the sprawling Newcastle goalkeeper Tim Krul. The forward then despatched the penalty himself to secure three big points.

Newcastle went in front inside 90 seconds through Ryan Donaldson, whose won a challenge with Nathaniel Chalobah just outside the area and sent a dipping half-volley into Jan Sebek's bottom right-hand corner.

It was the worst imaginable start against a Newcastle side with former England defender Sol Campbell at the heart of its defence, the 36-year-old still working his way back to full fitness after a summer transfer from Arsenal.

Patrick McLaughlin tested Sebek with another low effort five minutes later but the goalkeeper saved well.

Chelsea were surrendering possession all too quickly in their own half, and when they did get the ball forward, Newcastle's high-lined defence caught the forward players offside. Part of the problem it seemed was Chelsea's own defence sitting too deep inside its own half, and coach Steve Holland could be heard encouraging his youngsters to step forward.

Nile Ranger had the ball in the net in the 15th minute but was flagged offside, and then the forward headed over from a corner as the home side continued to have the upper hand.

On 26 minutes Jacopo Sala had Chelsea's first effort on target, a curling free-kick that lacked any real venom and was easy for Magpies goalkeeper Krul to claim. It seemed to galvanize the Blues a little though, and a succession of corners followed.

The equalizer came from Milan Lalkovic, latching on to a through ball and calmly slotting low across Krul from the right-hand channel and into the bottom corner.

The sides would only be level for a few minutes before the Slovakian Lalkovic put Chelsea in front with another tidy finish, this time converting Aziz Deen-Conteh's pull-back after the left-back had overlapped and seared into the Newcastle area. Campbell, it seemed, was still a yard off the pace. No surprise given the breakneck speed at which Chelsea had moved the ball from one end to the other.

The turnaround was a major surprise for anyone who had seen the first 25 minutes, and it almost got better just before half-time when a loose ball fell to Sala just before the break, though the Italian could only fire high at the far post.

Less than two minutes into the second half Sala did hit the net, but his goal was chalked off for offside after Tore had picked him out.

At the other end Deen-Conteh showed his defensive capabilities with a superbly-timed tackle inside the area, a challenge that will have impressed the 3,700 inside St James' Park.

Newcastle began to press again though and Chelsea was forced to defend stoically, Joan Edmundsson curling just over after Rohan Ince had half-cleared with a header.

The home side wouldn't have to wait long for an equaliser though, after Ranger managed to keep possession under pressure from Billy Clifford and square for Haris Vuckic, his fellow striker, to slot home.

Sebek had to make another important save to maintain parity with 15 minutes remaining, when sub Phil Airey shot low and hard, and it looked as though this game may have a winner.

In a bid to make sure it was Chelsea, Holland introduced Kaby for Daniel Pappoe, Chalobah dropping into centre-half, and then Adam Phillip made a return from the bench with eight minutes remaining after a lengthy period out through injury - it was his first competitive reserve outing in a year.

Vuckic volleyed inches wide from distance and then Sebek had to make a fine double save, first from the Slovenian and then from Airey who had followed up his initial parry to keep his side in it.

Then, with seconds of injury time remaining, Phillip raced through and was brought down by Krul to ensure a penalty for Chelsea.

The sub took the ball himself and confidently strode up and stroked hit shot hard into the bottom left-hand corner to win what had been an entertaining encounter, making the long trip home all the more pleasant.

Coming To Terms With Mixed Zone

So the game is over, three points have been earned and thoughts turn to a swift exit from the stadium to catch the flight back to England. Only one responsibility now awaits the players after a Champions League game - the post-match mixed zone.

That is a Uefa-designated requirement for Champions League and Europa League football, the playing staff of each side must pass through an area between the tunnel and the team coach where members of the press and media wait to answer questions that will feature in the next day's reports of the action.

It is not an event that takes place in domestic football, other than at Wembley where the procedure applies in much the same way.

Players are not obligated to stop and talk, and following a bad result you may find that, understandably, numbers who do donate a few minutes of their time to share their thoughts drop.

The manager too has his requirements. Following the game, Carlo Ancelotti must do a 'flash' interview - that is, straight after the final whistle - with the national TV broadcaster, in England's case that is either ITV or Sky, before entering a press conference shortly afterwards. These tend to last between five and 10 minutes, but can take longer depending on the amount of translation required for foreign media.

For example, the coach of an English side who speaks little English may need questions, and his own words, translated into his native tongue, then into English and finally into the language of the opposition side and its local media - it is a time-consuming process, although some coaches have been known to translate themselves.

The man of the match, or players that contributed largely to victory, may also be requested by the TV crews as they come off the pitch - at Zilina, it was Daniel Sturridge who spoke to Sky's Guy Havord, while Petr Cech spoke to the Slovakian broadcasters in his native Czech.

The mixed zone (which at Stamford Bridge runs across the East Stand touchline, between the tunnel and the corner flag) is split into four sections, one for TV rights holders and club channels (Chelsea TV), one for other TV channels, one for audio media (radio) and a final one for written press and internet. Even here there is further seperation with, for example, the Sunday paper journalists requiring different words from those to be used the next day.

These are where most quotes you will read from the players over the subsequent days after a game will have come from, an area where hundreds of journalists have been known to compete for the prime locations. At the Bridge, we are fortunate to have plenty of space though at other grounds there has been the sight of Didier Drogba conducting interviews in a car park on the way to the coach. Last night at Zilina, it was a small, classroom-sized room behind the changing rooms, with media men and women crammed in behind a barrier and the players streaming past.

The day before a game, there is also a press conference, usually at the stadium but sometimes at a training ground (last year Jose Mourinho opted to conduct his at Inter's training ground, an hour's drive from the San Siro), involving the manager and one player - on Tuesday Cech joined Carlo Ancelotti in fielding questions, with clubs required to use Champions League-themed backdrops incorporating the competition's sponsors' logos.

It all makes for a busy time, for players, managers and media, but it simply has to be to satisfy the worldwide interest in football's elite club competition.