Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas is confident his side can drag themselves back in the title race after their last-gasp win against Wolves. Before the match speculation was rife about Villas-Boas' future with the club following Chelsea's shocking 3-1 defeat at home to Aston Villa on New Year's Eve, however, Frank Lampard's 89th minute strike snatched a valuable win for his under-fire manager, who now lives on to fight another day.
Despite the win Villas-Boas' future is by no means certain and he remains the second favourite for the chop in the Next Premier League Manager To Be Sacked Odds. The 34-year-old's odds have drifted slightly from 9/4 to 3/1 with Stan James but he knows that they could once again be cut if his side slip up in any of their upcoming league games against Sunderland, Norwich and Swansea. Chelsea's owner, Roman Abramovich, will expect at least seven points from these fixtures, with a defeat in any of those matches not only further damaging Chelsea's already slim title prospects but would also push Villas-Boas further towards the exit door.
Next up for Chelsea is a home tie against Championship side Portsmouth in the FA Cup third round on Sunday 8th January. Villas-Boas will hope that the competition will come as a welcome distraction and is likely to field a strong line-up. The match is a repeat of the 2010 FA Cup Final, which Chelsea won 1-0 courtesy of a Didier Drogba goal. Chelsea are the overwhelming odds-on 1/6 favourites for the win, while Pompey have long odds of 14/1, with a draw available at 19/4.
Odds provided by Stan James.
