Di Matteo dismisses AVB rumours

Roberto Di Matteo has insisted he was totally loyal to Andre Villas-Boas before taking over as interim Chelsea boss.

Speaking to Eurosport-Yahoo!, Di Matteo dismissed rumours he conspired against Villas-Boas prior to the Portuguese’s sacking as Blues manager.

He said: “I did my best and Andre knows it. I did not conspire against him and all the decisions we took, we took together.

“I have always behaved with the utmost professionalism and loyalty towards the club, the staff, the team and fans.

“All new managers inevitably replace a colleague when things go wrong or results are not up to expectations. This is the nature of football.”