Quaresma ready to bail out Chelsea boss Scolari

Ricardo Quaresma believes he can help Luiz Felipe Scolari get Chelsea back on track now the Blues boss has given him the chance to kickstart his career.

Quaresma arrives at Chelsea with plenty to prove after being disgarded by Jose Mourinho just six months after joining Inter Milan from Porto for 20 million pounds.

The 25-year-old had already flopped at Barcelona so his career at the highest level was in danger of remaining unfulfilled until Scolari came along to rescue him with the offer of a loan move to Stamford Bridge until the end of the season.

The chance to link up with Scolari again after their successful spell together with the Portugal national team persuaded Quaresma to snub Tottenham when talks over a deal to take him to north London were well underway.

“I was aware of Tottenham’s interest and I am always happy to find that other clubs are interested in my services. But coming to Chelsea was the best option for me,” Quaresma said.

“For me having Mr Scolari here gives me more confidence because he has confidence in my abilities.

“As soon as I heard from Chelsea I didn’t think twice because it is a great club and I knew Mr Scolari would help me out.”

Escaping his unhappy spell at the San Siro has already allowed Quaresma to rediscover his enjoyment of the game. Now he intends to lift the gloom around Chelsea by firing Scolari’s team get back in the Premier League title race.

“I’m going to use this opportunity to show that I fight to achieve my goals and to show everybody my qualities,” Quaresma said. “When you fight you take the opportunities to prove yourself.

“I got my joy back. I wasn’t playing very happily (at Inter). Footballers need to play with joy and need to enjoy their game to show their quality. I believe you take risks in life and I like to take risks.

“Chelsea is a team that plays to win. It is used to winning games and in football everything is possible.

“There are so many games to play still. We have to continue to improve our qualities, so we can win the Premier League and other titles.”

Scolari has been desperate to land a flair player since missing out on Robinho to Manchester City in August but it took Joe Cole’s season-ending injury to finally persuade the Chelsea board to give their manager what he wanted.

It could prove a fortunate sequence of events for both men.

Unlike Quaresma’s stormy relationship with Mourinho, it seems the Portuguese playmaker and his new Brazilian coach should have plenty in common as they try to prove their detractors wrong.

“In football you always hear criticism. Nobody escapes from that,” Quaresma said. “It is normal. We all have good and bad moments.

“It is the same for Mr Scolari. What I like about him is he knows what he is doing. He knows a lot about football, he is very experienced and intelligent. He is welcoming and helps you improve your game.

“Even though he is being criticised I am sure he is doing his best and trying to help the other players to play the way he expects.”

Quaresma, who comes from Gypsy stock, is imbued with a fierce sense of self and will never lose faith in his ability to shine on Europe’s grandest stages.

“I don’t know how to lose, I don’t like losing any battles,” he said.

“I don’t believe I have difficulties in great teams. What I think happened is sometimes in great teams I didn’t have the opportunities to show my qualities.

“But I do believe in my quality and I believe at Chelsea I am going to show my worth.”