He said: "We were out of the title race much too early last season and that was not acceptable.

"By the middle of October we were already sitting 16 points behind the leaders and with no chance of winning the championship.

"This time I expect us to be fighting for the title in March, April and May. Then if you win or lose it by one or two points you can accept it.

"Last season we knew we were facing major competition in England from clubs who had invested a lot of money.

"We wanted to choose a different way and be a bit more patient to develop these young players.

"But this time we cannot claim we are too inexperienced because even players like Cesc Fabregas, who is only 20, have already played 100 games.

"We showed in spells last season what we were capable of. We got to the Carling Cup final — but that is not a major trophy.

"The Premier League and the Champions League are major trophies. And those are my targets for next season."