Gianfranco Zola: Atletico Madrid Too Good For Chelsea FC

Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-USA TODAY Sports

Chelsea FC legend Gianfranco Zola was interviewed by Sky Sports News after yesterday’s loss to Atletico Madrid which saw Chelsea get knocked out of the Champions League at the semifinal stage. Zola’s points can be summed up in one simple sentence, Atletico Madrid was simply the better team yesterday and unfortunately he was right. The only real positive that can be taken from the match is that Chelsea were not cheated out of it by Atletico diving to win penalties or the referee being a complete idiot. They were simply beaten fair and square but the club will come back better and stronger.

Gianfranco Zola’s comments on the match and Chelsea’s future:

"“It is always a risk when you go into the second game with a 0-0. If you’re playing at home in the first leg of a Champions League game and you draw 0-0, then you are quite happy. In the second game, the pressure is on the home team and it can become difficult for them. In my opinion, Jose was trying to be cautious in the beginning to try to do something more aggressive in the end, when the opposition was more tired – but it didn’t work out. Atletico Madrid is such a big team and in a perfect moment, so nothing could work against them – it’s as simple as that. Sometimes when the opposition is so good then it’s just part of football. On the day, Atletico were better.”“Chelsea are very ambitious. Jose is such a good manager and I’m sure they will get better and stronger from yesterday’s game. Their task is big. There are so many strong teams, especially in Europe, but Chelsea are a part of that.”"

Gianfranco Zola played for Chelsea FC from 1996-2003 and is often voted as the club’s most popular and best player by the fans. He has recently gone in to managing but is currently without a club after resigning from his post at Watford in December 2013.

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