After his 90 minutes of fame, Hilario wants next slice of big time

The keeper who came in from the cold had no fear thanks to Mourinho's psychological brilliance. By Sam Wallace

In the club bankrolled by Russians, he was the goalkeeper who came in from the cold. Hilario, who was Chelsea's humble third choice between the sticks until the weekend, said yesterday that beating Barcelona on his debut on Wednesday had required special psychological preparation to deal with the injuries to Petr Cech and Carlo Cudicini.

Without those two accidents, Hilario would still be a man known to few beyond his family, friends and the gateman at Chelsea's training ground, but that did not prevent Jose Mourinho from doing extra psychological work with his players to ensure they were in the right frame of mind for Wednesday's game. "The work on the pitch was exactly the same as on the eve of every game," Hilario said. "This time the difference was perhaps the psychological work, which was more incisive. These serious injuries can affect us."

There was no psychologist brought in from outside the club to counsel the Chelsea players. That job fell to Mourinho, who told his team that they could not allow the injuries to their team-mates against Reading to affect their commitment to taking on Barcelona. For a man stepping into a role in which his two predecessors had been brutally struck down, it seems that fear never crossed Hilario's mind.

Famous for a day, or at least until Cudicini's concussion clears to the extent that he can play again, Hilario wasted no time before the Barcelona match in seeking out a former team-mate, and one of the opposition's biggest stars, to tell him this was to be the night for the unknown goalkeeper. His target was Deco, a former colleague at Porto, and, from the way Hilario relates the conversation, no one could accuse him of lacking confidence.

"I found him [Deco] in the stadium and said to him: 'Look at you, all quiet, in your corner, this is my game. You've already had your great games and moments and will have others'." Hilario added: "It wasn't the circumstances in which I wanted to play. But during these years I've been a professional, similar situations have happened to me, some in which I benefited from the opportunity, others in which colleagues of mine benefited. Sometimes these opportunities are one-offs, but getting into the team in a situation like that isn't pleasant. You just have to put the emotional and human part to one side. We have to have very strong mental power.

"I was with Cech two days ago and I was, in fact, stunned. But the big strength is in the head.

"I will never forget the victory, but it's totally dedicated to Petr, as nobody other than him deserves this dedication. This win is for him. He's a person with a lot of strength, he's a winner and will quickly come out of it. Petr will succeed. We're all waiting for him."

Tomorrow, Chelsea face Portsmouth at home and Cudicini is by no means certain to play. With the record that Hilario has for Chelsea, he could be forgiven for hoping that a comeback from the Italian would be just in time to keep his precious memories of a clean sheet against Barcelona intact. By the sounds of it, he wants to keep his place.

"I got the ball as a souvenir, signed by all my team-mates and by the manager," he said. "It's a special souvenir, the best souvenir possible. The fact that the game ended with the ball in my hands gave me the opportunity to do it. I don't know if I'll keep my place. I'm ready for it, but it all depends on the manager.

"It was a fantastic night and also very important for me. I will never forget that match. From the moment I went out to warm up until the end of the game I felt great affection and confidence from everyone. The atmosphere was fantastic."

Cudicini said on Wednesday that the protection offered to goalkeepers in the Premiership by referees falls well below the standard he had experienced in the rest of Europe. Hilario, who was with Cech at the Madejski stadium on Saturday until the player was transported to hospital, said that safety had been sacrificed in the name of entertainment.

"I was stunned by what I saw, I was with Petr for about 30 minutes and they were moments of great agony and worry," he said. "That was without having even seen the challenge. Then there was the incident with Carlo, in a challenge which I saw live. The protection there for goalkeepers is being lost, bit by bit, with the changes that are being introduced into football.

"Goalkeepers always end up being the victims of the changes which are made in the name of getting more goals in football, in the name of the show, as you hear it said.

"But people forget that football is beautiful not only because of the goals but also because of the saves that goalkeepers make. And they have to be protected, as a matter of obligation."

Additional reporting by Victor Vago