Pompey boss eager to prove a point against Chelsea

Grant admits he felt like the fall guy during his time in charge at Chelsea.

Grant managed to take Chelsea to the Champions League final but lost it against Manchester United.

“Every day there is always someone in the street who will remind me of that John Terry penalty. Would I have kept my job if we had won the Champions League? I really don’t know,” said Grant.

“The chairman said it was my fault Terry missed and it was my fault that we didn’t start that season so well.

“He forgot I wasn’t the manager at the beginning. It was all my fault. That was my job as the manager – to be guilty.”

“I proved everything I needed to at Chelsea. The facts speak for themselves,” he continued.

“It was more than anyone at the club expected. I can only be proud. It was one of the best seasons in their history.

“The team was not in a good situation when I took over. Not in terms of performance, not in points and not in Europe after they had just drawn against Rosenborg.

“Nobody knew who I was and I was trying to do things a different way to Mourinho, which was going to take time.

“Arsene Wenger and Alex Ferguson needed more than one year to put their influence on the team. I did it in a very short time with the help of a great staff and great players.

“I believed it was right for me to stay because the team was improving all the time.

“Every month we got better. In the last three months we won all the big games.

“But the owner made a decision. I had two choices – to look back or look forward. I chose to look forward.”