Thursday, 3 December 2009

Ancelotti upbeat despite defeat

Carlo Ancelotti claims Chelsea's youth system is flourishing, despite watching an inexperienced side slip to defeat against Blackburn in the Carling Cup.

The Blues missed out on a place in the last four on penalties at Ewood Park after controversial 18-year-old star Gael Kakuta - the man at the centre of Chelsea's transfer embargo case - saw his spot-kick saved.

But Ancelotti, who can still point to the team's Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup campaigns as realistic prospects for silverware this season, said young players like Kakuta and Jeffrey Bruma had acquitted themselves with aplomb.

'Kakuta played very well and Bruma played very well,' the Italian explained.

'They will play in our team in the future because they have very good quality.

'For them it was a good match to have experience and we are happy for them.'

The surprise loss in Lancashire meant Chelsea could not join fellow league title hopefuls Manchester United in the semi-finals.

But referring to the weekend win over London rivals Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium - and this weekend's difficult trip to Eastlands against Manchester City - Ancelotti said the Carling Cup game was 'not our priority'.

Nevertheless, he was pleased with the way his team responded after a poor first-half display saw them go a goal behind.

'We had a good team but the first half was not good, we didn't enter onto the pitch with determination,' he said.

'The second half was better and we showed very good spirit, very good mentality and this is good for the future.'ADNFCR-708-ID-19494446-ADNFCR

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