FOUNDATIONS IN PLACE FOR SUCCESS

Speaking to Chelsea TV, Avram Grant has responded to reported claims from Arsenal that Chelsea lacks a balance of power in our management between boardroom and coaching staff.

He said: 'All I know about Arsenal is that ten years ago, they signed an unknown coach, who is my friend by the way, and nobody knew who he is, and then they succeed, if I may say, because of him.

'This is what is important to say about Arsenal. The other thing is I don't want to be involved in Arsenal business and I hope they don't want to be involved in Chelsea business.

Grant may have kept his cards close to his chest on team selection yesterday when talking to media, but he was completely open regarding his belief that the side does not need wholesale changes to excel.

'Maybe it's time to change a little bit, 20 to 25 per cent,' Grant explained. 'The base is good, Chelsea have done good things in the last three years, but this is the time to change things.

'We don't take it from one side to the other side. We want to do things a little bit differently,' he continued.

'We want to win games, at the end of the day it's a big club, and if you win it's obvious if you don't win everybody is wrong, including me sometimes. Of course we know our first commitment is to win. The way to win, it's good now, but we can do it better.'

There is also a stoic belief in the Israeli that the club is in a superb position to succeed. In spite of the recent indifferent run, he insists it is in no way too late to turn the campaign around.

'The club can win all the titles, that's for sure. We are three points from Manchester United, five from Arsenal, the problem is not the points. We want to win games now, and then anything can happen,' he said.

'The base of Chelsea is a very good base. The position is not a bad position -it's only the beginning of the year,' he explained. 'Sometimes you start the season well, sometimes you don't. Because it's the start of the season you can do things better, that's what we want to do.'

He may not have been here long, but Grant certainly seems at home with the Chelsea approach. Speaking about the importance of winning this evening at Hull, he emphasised that the opposition does not matter, as long as we come out on top.

'I think when you belong to Chelsea Football Club the main thing is to win all the games you can win, doesn't matter if it's Hull away or Barcelona at home. Chelsea Football Club wants to win anything, anywhere.

This isn't to say he hasn't done his homework though, and having already praised the work of Tigers manager Phil Brown yesterday, he added: 'They will be very organised as a team, Phil Brown worked in Bolton and was very organised. The two wingers are good wingers, and they have a good, organised midfield.'