Chelsea's Jose Mourinho believes his London side are still outsiders among the traditional footballing powers and the club needs to develop to exert an influence.
"Chelsea still needs to grow a lot as a club," Jose Mourinho, who took Chelsea to their first league title for 50 years last season, told Portuguese sports daily Record in an interview.
"It doesn't even have a seat on the G-14; it doesn't have a voice where decisions are taken and it also has no influence among the European disciplinary bodies," Mourinho said.
Chelsea, who need four more victories to guarantee a second title in a row, have been rejected as members by the influential G-14 group, which includes Barcelona, Manchester United and Juventus.
Mourinho has had several run-ins with soccer authorities, notably last season after a spat with Barcelona when he was fined and suspended by UEFA.
He has frequently lamented that his nouveau riche club, bankrolled by billionaire Russian owner Roman Abramovich, does not wield the sort of influence enjoyed by soccer's aristocracy either in England, where he believes fixtures are rarely scheduled in Chelsea's favour, or in Europe.
Barcelona, beaten by the Londoners last season, earned revenge by knocking Chelsea out of the Champions League last week.
"The club has grown because of the financial muscle of its owner and through the people who work there from managers to coaching staff and all the support staff," he said.
"It has established itself as a force in English football but it still needs to grow a lot as an institution," he told Record.
Chelsea chief executive Peter Kenyon, who has been lobbying for G-14 membership, praised Mourinho this week, saying he had 100 per cent support from the club.
Despite the Barcelona elimination he said: "No one is despondent around Cheslea as this season could still be the greatest ever in the club's history," he told Chelsea's website.
"We are in a great position in the Premiership and the FA Cup is something that all of us... are desperate to win also.
"Winning back-to-back Premiership titles has only been done once and to do that would be an unbelievable achievement on its own. He has 100 per cent support from the club," Kenyon was quoted as saying.