SCREW YOU ...Phil launched scathing attack on Chelsea

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Luiz Felipe Scolari

SCREW YOU ... Scolari launched a scathing attack on Chelsea's players just days before his sacking

Speaking to France Football Magazine five days before he was sacked, Scolari also took a swipe at chairman Roman Abramovich for failing to secure the services of Robinho, who joined Manchester City from Real Madrid in a £32million deal last summer.

Scolari said: “At Chelsea we don't have the player who can make the difference by himself by producing something magical on the pitch. "We miss that. In the past, Arjen Robben was at Chelsea and he could make the difference. But now there is no one.

"Robinho could have been this player. He is not afraid to dribble, to take a risk. As a Brazilian, I like this. “My team isn't Brazilian enough. It is a 'bureaucratic' team. That's the style of my players. That's why Robinho would have done a lot of good for the team.

"With my squad it's very difficult to play with Drogba and Anelka up front. I don't have the players to play on the wings in a 4-4-2 system. “Salomon Kalou can play on the wing in a 4-3-3 but not in a 4-4-2 because he doesn't defend well enough.

"With Anelka and Drogba at the front, who would play on the left? And in the middle? “If we played 4-4-2 we would lose the battle in midfield. So, I have to choose between Anelka and Drogba.

"Drogba lacks a lot of confidence at the moment. After two or three big injuries, he is missing something. Drogba doesn't have enough confidence, so I choose Anelka."

Scolari lashes Chelsea stars

Criticism: Luiz Felipe Scolari bemoaned Chelsea's lack of creativity

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Luiz Felipe Scolari gave a scathing assessment of Chelsea's weaknesses just five days before he was sacked by the club.

The World Cup-winning Brazilian blamed his failure to keep pace with Manchester United and Liverpool to a lack of creative players at Stamford Bridge and identified the club's failure to land Robinho last summer as a key factor behind their disappointing form this season.

He went on to attack Florent Malouda and Didier Drogba for their poor form, describing the latter as 'lacking confidence'.

In an revealing interview published in France Football, Scolari highlighted the problems he has faced this season and offered an insight into the turmoil behind the scenes at the west London club.

Chelsea were on the verge of signing Robinho before Manchester City pipped them to sign the star from Real Madrid for a British record $32million. Highlighting the lack of spark, the former Brazil and Portugal coach said: 'At Chelsea we don't have the player who can make the difference by himself by producing something magical on the pitch. We miss that. I don't know why.

'In the past, Arjen Robben was at Chelsea and he could make the difference. But now there is no one. 'Robinho could have been this player. He is not afraid to dribble, to take a risk. As a Brazilian, I like this. My team isn't Brazilian enough. It is a 'bureaucratic' team. 'That's the style of my players. That's why Robinho would have done a lot of good for the team.'

Asked why he he rarely teamed Nicolas Anelka and Didier Drogba in attack, Scolari said: 'I don't have those players, so I have to adapt.

'With my squad it's very difficult to play with Drogba and Anelka up front. I don't have the players to play on the wings in that system. Salomon Kalou can play on the wing in a 4-3-3, but not in a 4-4-2 because he doesn't defend well enough.

'With Anelka and Drogba at the front, who would play on the left? And in the middle? If we played 4-4-2 we would lose the battle in midfield. So, I have to choose between Anelka and Drogba. And Drogba lacks a lot of confidence at the moment.

'After two or three big injuries, he is missing something. Drogba doesn't have enough confidence, so I choose Anelka.'

Struggle: Didier Drogba... Favoured: Nicolas Anelka

Scolari also echoed what many Stamford Bridge observers have argued since Jose Mourinho spent $15m bringing France winger Florent Malouda to the club.

'Malouda, at Chelsea, isn't the Malouda from Lyon,' Scolari added. 'He is OK, but he isn't the same that he was with Lyon. He doesn't make the difference in games any longer.'

The 62-year-old revealed a lack of dressing room harmony and even claimed managing in Brazil - where coaches regularly lasts months rather than years - is easier than the Barclays Premier League.

He said: "There are egos in the dressing room, but that is normal, isn't it? We all have egos. But my relationships with the players are good on the pitch. 'It is true that they are not the same as the relationships I had with my players in Portugal, but I spent five years there.

'In Brazil, it was also easier. I knew everything about the players. Here, I don't have a family relation with the players. Everything is on the pitch. Outside, there is nothing. 'I do not understand why we don't play well. Sometimes it's a problem with the players' positioning on the pitch. Sometimes we give the ball away too often. There are also individual mistakes.

'The injuries also make things hard. When you add all these things together, the situation is very complicated.' Scolari also criticised the congested fixture list in English football, adding: 'We don't have time to work tactically, because there are so many matches in this country.

'We work on very specific things with the defence and the attack – especially set pieces. But the midfield requires a lot more time. 'We only have 15 minutes here, 10 minutes there to work on that and it is not enough. Unfortunately, the midfielders don't work a lot.

'In Europe I know the manager doesn't usually do that. But in Brazil, we do it very often. 'There, if there is a game on Saturday and another one the next Saturday, we play 11 players against 11 on the Tuesday and the Thursday. It helps work the positioning of the players, the set pieces. It's tactical work and I think it can help the team here.'

But the Brazilian refused to blame owner Roman Abramovich for not releasing more funds for transfers last summer. Scolari said: 'It's a new situation for the club. I understand the situation in the world today, and that it is more difficult to buy players now. It's not a problem.

'I don't have to use that as an excuse. I have a good squad and when I signed for Chelsea I wasn't promised fortunes to spend on players. I have a good squad.' And with a hint that he knew what was coming, Scolari said: 'Club officials are in charge of this. Last summer they decided to offer me the position of manager.

'That was their responsibility. Now, if they decide to sack me this is also their decision. I just do my job.'

Scolari assessment of Chelsea's weaknesses

1. Lack of creative players at Stamford Bridge.

2. Failure to land Robinho last summer.

3. Didier Drogba poor form and 'lacking confidence'.

4. Chelsea don't have a player who can make the difference.

5. Cannot play 4-4-2 because Salomon Kalou doesn't defend well enough.

6. 'Malouda, at Chelsea, isn't the Malouda from Lyon.

7. A lack of dressing room harmony.

8. Congested fixture list in English football.

9. Players' positioning poor, give the ball away too often. Too many individual mistakes.

10. No time to work tactically, because next match come around very fast in this country.

11. Team isn't Brazilian enough. It is a 'bureaucratic' team.

12. 'The injuries make things hard. Add all these things together, the situation is very complicated.'

Managing in Brazil is easier than the Barclays Premier League.

FirePig SG

scolari isnt that good from the start and i pretty much knew chelsea wont do well la.

scolari doesnt even have much achievement. His major cups were the world cup with brazil which many coaches can also achieve if given the chance.

scolari is just lucky to beat england on two major occasions because england simply sucks at penalty kicks.

In euro 2004 when portugal lost to greece tamely in the final, people can already realise how lousy the manager is. In euro 2008, portugal put in a lacklustre perfomance against swiss and germany.

Maybe when he was younger, he might be better but he just sux in my eyes. It is not a surpise to me that martin o niell's team is higher than chelsea atm.

limpper SG

liverpool doesnt have a squad better than chelsea's

zocoss SG

Ray Wilkins has denied 'player power' was responsible for getting Luiz Felipe Scolari sacked and insists there are no rifts within the Chelsea dressing room.

Scolari was axed by owner Roman Abramovich as Chelsea slumped to fourth place in the Premier League having dropped 16 home points this season.

Last Saturday's goalless home draw against Hull was the last straw and the club moved swiftly to appoint Dutch coach Guus Hiddink until the end of the season.

But speculation Scolari was helped on his way by divisions within the Chelsea first-team squad were denied by Wilkins, even though captain John Terry had hinted not all the players were behind the Brazilian coach.

"Totally untrue," declared Wilkins. "There's no player power here. We have to nail that. There's no player power at this club. "The results haven't been what Roman wanted and that's why there's been a change of manager. Whenever any coach coaches a club as big as Chelsea, the players who don't play will be disgruntled, that's a fact.

"There are no splits whatsoever and we hope to show against Watford that's the case. "You can only pick 11 players. It was very difficult for him because then you get a situation where people say the training methods are wrong.

"But every coach will have their different training methods and some players like them and some don't. But we don't have a split, none whatsoever. "We have big players and they all want to play and it's been difficult for some of them to accept the fact they weren't selected.

"But as I said before, the players who were playing would have loved Phil, the players who weren't would have had an indifferent opinion. "That's happened from day one in football. If you are not in the side, the manager's a 'so-and-so'. And that's a fact. So what do you do? You get in the side and then he's a nice guy.

"It's results driven and if the results aren't there it doesn't matter who it is they will change the manager. Unfortunately, that's happened here. "I was shocked and disappointed because I enjoyed his company. He is a very decent man and I enjoyed working with him immensely but football is a tough game, a couple of results went against us and a decision was made."

But Wilkins accepts there have been too many changes at Stamford Bridge in recent years. Hiddink's temporary appointment makes him the fifth Chelsea manager since Abramovich bought the club in 2003 while Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United have prospered by making no managerial changes during the same period.

2cansam SG

can't blame scolari, he's just one man on the dugout shouting orders,

it's the 11 players that transmit and carry out his orders.

Liverpool is still playing well , let the results speak for themselves

zocoss SG

I feel he has to take the major blame for it... Blaming the players isn't fair... If the orders coming out were poor orders... Then you can't blame the other 11 who were following his orders...

Just too many areas he didn't seem to do well at...

These are just some of the very basic areas as a manager he got it wrong... Now we know why Portugal defended the way they did at the Euro...

dragg SG

he should say thank you for the compensation.