Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis plays down Chelsea crisis ahead of Champions League match

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has played down the notion that Chelsea are in crisis.

The Premier League giants travel to San Paolo on Tuesday for their Champions League last-16 first-leg clash hoping to put their poor run of form behind them, having failed to win each of their last four games.

There have also been suggestions that coach Andre Villas-Boas does not have the backing of the entire Chelsea squad, but De Laurentiis does not expect an easy job for Napoli.

"People said that Napoli too were in crisis until Friday morning," he told the Corriere dello Sport.

"But at Fiorentina we played a terrific and beautiful game, a feast for the eye, we looked like lions. And on Tuesday, we will be lions again.

"Chelsea have real talent and experience, they could recover suddenly. I do not fall for it."