“I said before the game that if we want to win, only the best Chelsea of the season can do this and at the end of the match I said the same. Maybe the draw was the right result.”
Middlesbrough manager Steve McClaren certainly thought so.
“Speaking to Claudio Ranieri after the game, he was full of compliments for the team. He thought we were the best team to come to Stamford Bridge this season.”
A relieved Ranieri was full of praise for his team for their hard fought battle.
“I am very pleased with this performance. The match was very hard. Boro played very well with a lot of movement, good tactically and only Gianfranco could help us and he did.
“Everybody worked very hard to get the ball and this is very important. And when the opposition did find the right way through us, there is Carlo – fantastic.”
A half-time substitution saw winger Jesper Gronkjaer replacing Jody Morris.
“I wanted to keep possession of the ball,” explained the Chelsea boss, “because they worked very hard, pressed very well. I wanted to slow down the match but it was impossible as they pressed a lot everywhere. Jody Morris didn’t deserve to come off but I needed another player so I put on a winger and then it was better.”
Deeply disappointed McClaren blamed a momentary lapse of concentration on his team’s failure to take any points from this afternoon’s encounter.
“Concentration is very big at the top level. We just switched off for one moment and got punished,” he moaned. “Zola saw the pass was on and executed it very well. But he’s capable of that.”
Inevitably the talk turned to Chelsea’s credentials as title contenders. Ranieri was quick to dismiss Chelsea’s chances.
“At the moment, no. But I am very ambitious like everybody at Chelsea: my chairman, our supporters are all ambitious, and slowly, slowly…. But my objective is to put Chelsea in the first four places – that is my first target.”
Steve McClaren was slightly more optimistic.
“They’ve got to be title contenders. They’re collecting points, winning football matches. I wouldn’t have said they played particularly well today but that’s what wins you titles. You can’t fault them: they keep getting results. They know how to win football matches. That’s what counts.
“I thought we gave them one hell of a game and deserved more.”
Ranieri pointed the way forward.
“Chelsea must try to win every match. The next match it will be the same. This is our life.”