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Carlo Ancelotti insisted he had "confidence" in Chelsea's John
Terry following newspaper allegations made before Sunday's 1-1 draw
at West Ham.
England captain Terry was reported to have taken secret cash
payments to lay on a behind-the-scenes tour of the club's training
ground.
The Chelsea manager used his post-match press conference
after Blues had claimed a point at Upton Park to defend his
skipper.
A Sunday newspaper claimed Terry accepted £10,000 in
cash within yards of Ancelotti at the club's Cobham training HQ to
arrange the visit for an undercover reporter.
Ancelotti said: "This is not correct. This is not true. The
club, me, the players, have a lot of confidence in John Terry and
John Terry did nothing wrong.
"He was very quiet, very calm, very concentrated for the
game. No problem."
When asked whether Terry had told him the story was not true,
Ancelotti added: "Yes. I have a lot of confidence in my captain."
Ancelotti did admit however, that Chelsea, who stretched
their lead over Manchester United at the top of the Premier League
to four points, were feeling the pressure going into the festive
period.
He said: "We didn't play a good match. We met a strong, hard
team. It was a tough game.
"It is not easy to play every three days. It is not easy to
prepare. Now we have one week to prepare for the next game and we
will improve.
"But we have four points more than anybody in the league and
we can have a good Christmas."
Ancelotti had the nerve of Frank Lampard and the decision of
an assistant referee to thank for his side's point in a match
decided by two penalties.
The first was slotted home in the first half by Alessandro
Diamanti after Ashley Cole had brought down Jack Collison.
The second-half equaliser came from the spot when Matthew
Upson was adjudged to have fouled Daniel Sturridge, a decision
which angered West Ham boss Gianfranco Zola.
Television replays revealed Upson had made a sound tackle but
the assistant referee waved his flag and persuaded referee Mike
Dean to change his original decision.
Zola said: "The referee got it right in the first place then
the linesman put his flag up and the referee changed his mind.
"His first impression was the right one. Pity he did not stay
with that. The players were disappointed. The linesman put the flag
up and that's why he gave it.
"It's a pity because the referee was better positioned than
the linesman. He was closer to the action."
Lampard had to take the penalty three times due to
encroachment, but beat Robert Green comfortably on each occasion.
Zola was delighted with the battling performance which
ensured the Hammers are not bottom of the Premier League at
Christmas.
Zola said: "I am happy because the attitude, the passion and
the courage of my players was remarkable. It was a good starting
point and it will affect everyone from now on.
"They were tired but they didn't look like it. They could
have played another 90 minutes.
"In the past we played some good games but I never felt the
atmosphere we had today. The players were encouraging each other,
working off each other. It really was contagious.
"Everybody was involved in it. There was a positive feeling.
It kept everyone very sharp."
The one setback was defender Danny Gabbidon picking up a
hamstring injury early on which could keep him out of the festive
fixtures.
