Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti admits he was surprised by Fulham's victory over Manchester United.

Chelsea face Fulham on Boxing Day.

"I wasn't the only one surprised," said Ancelotti. "Fulham deserved to win, played very well and stayed compact for 90 minutes. To win 3-0 against United is not easy."

But then Ancelotti has a lot of respect for his Fulham counterpart Roy Hodgson and knows he will face a tactical battle on Monday.

"I've known Roy a long time," he added. "When I was assistant coach of Italy, I went to watch his training when he was coaching the national team in Switzerland. I stayed one week with him. He's very good at putting his team in a good tactical position. They play 4-4-2, but he's a very good teacher of this system."