See the second goal of Alex this season here

The Thursday Interview: ALEX

Thu, 12th Feb 2009

As the only Chelsea man to have worked with Guus Hiddink previously, Alex knows better than most what to expect from the Dutch coach.
Hiddink was in charge of the PSV side that contained the Brazilian centre-half in the early half of this decade before taking up his current Russia role in 2006. It was a job combined for a period with the Australian national job, and Alex exclusively gave his opinion of the 62-year-old to chelseafc.com.
‘He is a good coach and a fantastic man. When I played in Brazil with Santos I remember he came all the way to watch my games and speak with me, he is a very good man,’said the 26-year-old, who then consideredwhat we can expect when Hiddink takes the reins from stand-in Ray Wilkins.
‘I think he would play a similar system here to what we have seen, and when I was at PSV we played a 4-3-3 system, and we had some very exciting times there.
‘In my three years in Holland, two of them were with Guus Hiddink and we won the title both times, and the double once, as well as reaching the semi-finals of the Champions League in my first year,’ Alex said.
The departure of Luiz Felipe Scolari and his support staff takes away a number of Alex’s fellow Portuguese speakers, yet there stille remains a sizeable community.
There remains six Portuguese players in the firts team squad, coupled with Alex’s fellow Brazilians Juliano Belletti and Mineiro.

Source: Official Chelsea website

(..) Then follows the January transfer window, and the Brazilian is keen to echo the sentiments of chief executive Peter Kenyon, despite persistant newspaper reports linking Alex with a move away from SW6.

Luiz Felipe Scolari:

‘Peter Kenyon said many times now, we don’t sell players and we don’t buy players. Finished. Peter is my boss, and this is the philosophy.
I believe my player and if he came to me and said I don’t give interview, I don’t need to answer about this. If he doesn’t give an interview for this and some newspaper writes something, I need to believe my players. He is happy, yesterday he came and said I didn’t give the interview.
The club has a contract with all of us and it respects that, and the players respect that contract. Only this.’   

Source: Official Chelsea FC site   

PSV has tried to get Alex back to Eindhoven. The chance seems to be little. PSV Managing Director Jan Reker:

‘We contacted Chelsea, but the reply was clear: under no circumstances will Alex leave Chelsea.’

Source: Telesport

Following reports in the media this morning (Thursday) regarding Alex, Chelsea Football Club has the following statement:

‘Chelsea would like to make clear that no transfer request has been received from any player. Chelsea will decide the future of any contracted player in the best interests of the club.’

Source: Official Chelsea FC site

Alex: Let me quit Chelsea

By IAN McGARRY
Published: 11 Dec 2008

PHIL SCOLARI has been rocked by a transfer request from Alex.

The Brazil defender hopes to move on from Chelsea next month.

Alex said: x93I told Chelsea a few days ago that I wanted to leave.

x93There are many options. But I have to think them through and see if Chelsea will let me leave in January.x94

It is a major blow for boss Scolari, who has failed to get on with his countryman since arriving in London in July.

AC Milan and Seville have already expressed an interest in the xa310million-rated centre-back.

Alex is frustrated by his lack of first-team involvement, having made just 12 appearances so far this season.

He knows he is third-choice behind John Terry and and Ricardo Carvalho.

But what really worries the Brazil star is he will fail to make his countryx92s 2010 World Cup team.

Brazil boss Dunga currently prefers Lucio and Juan as his central defenders and has told Alex he needs to play more games to be considered.

Alex has not even been on the bench for the South Americansx92 most recent qualifiers. The player, who began his career with Santos, came to Chelsea via PSV Eindhoven.

The Blues paid one dollar for him when he moved in the summer of 2007, after being on loan with the Dutch outfit for three years.

The silver lining for Scolari is that any money generated by a sale could help finance buying a top new striker.

Source: The Sun

Alex scored his first goal of the season in the home match of today against Sunderland: 5-0.

See the 1-0 here.
See the 2-0 (with an assist from Alex) here.

Unfortunately Alex didn’t receive any of the Chelsea awards.

Last night Joe Cole became Chelsea Player of the Year. The Goal of the Year award went to Juliano Belletti and the Players’ Player award (selected by the squad and staff) went to Ricardo ‘Riccy’ Carvalho.

Alex is two times selected for the Chelsea Goal Of The Year.

The nominees are:

• a) 3 October 2007 – Didier Drogba v Valencia
• b) 20 October 2007 – Alex v Middlesbrough
• c) 27 October 2007 – Didier Drogba v Manchester City
• d) 31 October 2007 – Andriy Shevchenko v Leicester City
• e) 26 December 2007 – Alex v Aston Villa
• f) 12 January 2008 – Juliano Belletti v Tottenham Hotspur
• g) 23 January 2008 – Joe Cole v Everton
• h) 1 March 2008 – Michael Ballack v West Ham United

VOTE HERE

You can also vote for Alex as Chelsea Player Of The Year:

VOTE HERE

The Thursday Interview: ALEX

Thu, 13th Dec 2007

Four months after his first Chelsea appearance, Alex has given his first major interview and confirmed that he is settling in rather well to life in SW6, discussing his English, team-mates and those spectacular goals.
The Brazilian defender arrived at the Bridge from PSV Eindhoven in the summer, and quickly set about immersing himself into British culture. He was even spotted boarding a red London bus outside the ground the day he arrived in London, and while he admits he has had his difficulties with language, the settling in period is now well and truly over. He began his career with legendary Brazilian club Santos, where he won the national championship, his first medal, before moving to Holland in 2004.
‘When I first arrived in Holland it was really difficult, the cold and the language particularly, but I am fine here, perfectly adapted. I had spent all my life in Brazil and it was a real shock,’ he admitted.
After three years at PSV, in which he had seen his stock rise and rise, Alex made the move across the North Sea to ply his trade with the Blues, something he is very proud to have done.
There can be few more demanding tasks than making your debut at Anfield, but this was the prospect facing the defender following Ricardo Carvalho’s injury at Reading in August.
Since that point, Alex has been a regular in the side, a reluctant beneficiary of the injuries suffered by both Carvalho and John Terry. Both have been tremendous influences on him since he arrived.
‘Both of them have been very helpful. They talk all the time and obviously Belletti helps too,’ Alex said. ‘We talk before games about which striker is faster or who does what manoeuvre, and it’s all very helpful.’
While many in a new country would have struggled to bed in, Alex was fortunate to count on several other Portuguese speakers within the squad – Carvalho, Paulo Ferreira and Hilario were all there upon his arrival, while Belletti became the second Brazilian at the club weeks later.
There was also of course Josxe9 Mourinho and his coaching staff, who Alex also compliments for helping him settle. ‘The whole group is really useful Belletti and the other Portuguese speakers are very helpful. If there is a problem in training or whatever they always jump in, it’s a really good group,’ said the defender, who had been nicknamed The Tank at his previous club.
‘It’s because I was strong and big and tough, because of the way I played,’ he recalled. ‘I don’t have one here yet, but I think they are trying to think of one for me.’

Things have been going well lately for the Blues, with the side unbeaten in 15 games, and recovering from a shaky patch. Alex has played in a dozen of those, and has been a major reason why so few goals have been conceded. Since Mourinho’s exit in mid September, Avram Grant has suffered just one defeat, in his first game away at Manchester United, and Alex, who was not used that day, believes we are now back on track after a difficult period. ‘Yes it was very difficult,’ he sighed. ‘There was great confusion for everybody. We were all very used to Mourinho, and he was a great man who helped me a great deal. ‘Obviously he spoke Portuguese and helped me to adapt my game, but Avram Grant is also very helpful and ready to talk, it’s just different.
‘There was a great deal of confusion and it did make a difference. We lost points, particularly at home with some draws, but gradually we are creeping up and keeping in touch with the leaders which is the most important thing.’ After key victories at home to West Ham and Sunderland, we are now just three points behind leaders Arsenal as we prepare to travel to the Emirates Stadium on Sunday. While acknowledging the problems we faced, Alex insists there is yet more to come from Chelsea.
‘We are all looking to improve every day in training and games, and especially at home, because losing points is not good enough.
‘Of course we have problems with injuries, but everybody who is fit is always looking to improve,’ he maintained. With Terry now operating at full fitness, and Carvalho’s return imminently anticipated, Alex knows he will have to be on top of his game if he is to keep his place in a side that is beginning to move through the gears.
Such is his quick adaptation to English football, it is easy to forget he is still a novice on these shores, and the player himself puts that down to the similarities in English and Dutch football.
‘It’s much the same as Holland, the formations, tactics and the way we play,’ he considered. ‘The difference here is the quality is higher, and it is more intense. The standard of play, the speed, it is all much greater.’
One thing Alex does have in his armoury that his colleagues do not, this season at least is a tendency to find the net. The defender met up with his former coach at PSV Ronald Koeman this week, with the Dutchman now in charge at Valencia, and noted the similarities he shares with the former Holland man.
‘I saw videos of him and like me he scored lots of free kicks and spectacular goals,’ he smiled. ‘He was a really good guy, and a very intelligent, tactically aware person.’
Having already found the net with a blistering strike at Middlesbrough, Alex doubled his Blues tally with a somewhat tamer effort at Rosenborg a fortnight ago, and he now believes the pressure is on to keep producing these moments.
‘I have to keep doing it! I like to come in and help the attack so have to keep doing that,’ he said.
‘I don’t practice too much because it’s dangerous, you can do yourself an injury, but luckily I have been able to do it in a couple of games.’
When asked if he ever scores typical centre half’s goals, those brave efforts inside the six-yard box that can go in via a bullet header, a knee or a nose, the Brazilian laughed, and explained: ‘It’s a bit difficult, I dream about it, but that’s a speciality for JT rather than me!’

By Andy Jones

Source: Official Chelsea website