Gracious Grant sets his sights on the real heavyweight title

Won over? Avram Grant salutes the Chelsea fans while one of his children carries a message of support

Michael Hart|Chief Football Correspondent

13 April 2012

Avram Grant insisted today that his Chelsea players will have recovered from their domestic disappointment in time to overcome Manchester United in the Champions League Final.

While Sir Alex Ferguson celebrated his 10th Premier League triumph, Grant was quick to claim that Chelsea's failure to overhaul United in the title race would have no bearing on the outcome of what will be the biggest match in the history of English club football.

The Chelsea manager is a genuine admirer of Ferguson's achievements and immediately after the 1-1 draw against Bolton yesterday sent a message of congratulations to the Old Trafford boss whose team clinched the title with their 2-0 win at Wigan.

In a modest managerial career the Israeli coach has faced nothing like the challenge awaiting him in 10 days yet he kicked off the countdown to Moscow in confident mood despite injury worries over John Terry and Didier Drogba. "Getting to the Champions League Final was our target," said Grant. "It is a match we have all dreamed of playing in. Now we are in the final we want to win it. We wanted to win the Premier League, too, but it was never in our hands, not for one minute.

"But in the last months we have developed our football. In my opinion we have finished the season playing some very good football.

"Now we go to Moscow - and we don't simply want to be a part of it. We want to win it."

In the end, careless home form and points dropped to teams like Fulham and Wigan cost Chelsea the title. Even so, their 85 points represents the second highest total achieved by the runners-up in 16 seasons of the Premier League.

In the coming days Grant will stress the positive elements in Chelsea's season. It is important that he restores confidence and ensures that failure to lift the domestic title doesn't undermine the recent momentum that has seen Chelsea knock Liverpool out of the Champions League and inflict a rare defeat on United.

Whatever he claims in public, he cannot have been pleased with yesterday's first-half performance. The heat may have been a factor, plus the loss of John Terry with an elbow injury after just ten minutes, but neither completely excuses Chelsea's indifference on a day that started with the Premier League title at stake.

Grant must have reminded them of the prize on offer at half time because they were far more decisive after the interval. Bolton, with nothing to play for, were content to defend in depth but the powerful running of Joe Cole, Dider Drogba and Ashley Cole began to make a difference.

But it was Andriy Shevchenko, a halftime substitute probably making his last appearance for the club, who capitalised on confusion in the Bolton area to give Chelsea the lead after 61 minutes. But as news of United's pending victory at Wigan seeped out you sensed a change of priority.

With the title lost, the Champions League final became the bigger consideration and in the dying seconds Matthew Taylor took advantage of this loss of concentration and shot between Petr Cech's legs to give Bolton an unlikely point.

It was not the end to the domestic season that Grant wanted but, after just eight months in charge, he now has a chance to write his own chapter in the club's history.

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Gracious Grant sets his sights on the real heavyweight title

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