30 December,2011 10:43 AM IST | | ANI
Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has confirmed that manager Andre Villas-Boas will continue in the post irrespective of his team's performance in the title race this season.
The statement comes in the wake of Villas-Boas axing several players including Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba, Florent Malouda, John Obi Mikel and Salomon Kalou from the club, The Sun reports.
It indicates Abramoivich's reversal of his policy of backing players when they complained about former bosses like Luiz Felipe Scolari, Claudio Ranieri and Avram Grant.
Villas-Boas took over from Carlo Ancelotti following Blues' title drought in the previous season.
The move implies that Abramovich is convinced that his club needs drastic revamping and seems to have been impressed with Villas-Boas straightforward attitude and strict way of handling the players, the paper said.
Chelsea is currently ranked fourth in the Premier League, and is trailing top-ranked Manchester City and Manchester United by 11 points.
