The Guardian today reports that the Special One still casts a shadow over Stamford Bridge as it seems that he played a part in new West Ham gaffer Gianfranco Zola’s decision to make a move for Chelsea assistant Steve Clarke. [Read the rest of this entry »]

Chelsea have been up to their old tricks again, as they splashed millions of pounds on a superstar name. Sometimes its just because they can, sometimes its because the board (or Mr R. Moneybags Abramovic) want to see the player, occasionally its because they need the player. This latest signing could just be the latter. [Read the rest of this entry »]

It’s hard to believe that the loveable Peter Kenyon has any enemies in this world. [Read the rest of this entry »]

Luiz Felipe Scolari will be formally announced as Chelsea’s new manager on 1st July – will this mean sweeping changes, including a new captain? [Read the rest of this entry »]

Perhaps not the most shocking story of the summer is that former Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho will be chasing his former talisman Frank Lampard. The vice captain has always made his feelings toward the ‘Special One’ clear, and him stalling over a new contract seems to suggest he could be on his way.
[Read the rest of this entry »]

He might be insisting that he’s 100% focused on steering Portugal to the Euro 2008 final, yet [Read the rest of this entry »]

John Terry might have captained Chelsea during the managerial years of Jose Mourinho, yet [Read the rest of this entry »]

The silly season isn’t even in full flow yet, and already we have been assaulted with a trio of transfer rumours that threaten to be as boring and interminable as watching the Lord of the Rings trilogy on loop… [Read the rest of this entry »]

It appears that the hunter is about to become the hunted. Chelsea might be throwing their weight around in the transfer market, making cheeky enquiries about the likes of Franck Ribery and Fernando Torres, only to be amazingly rebuffed by the clubs in question. However, [Read the rest of this entry »]

Ricardo Carvalho was looking nailed-on to stay at Stamford Bridge this summer, especially after Chelsea were kind enough to appoint his manager at international level. However, [Read the rest of this entry »]

While the likes of Ricardo Carvalho and Paolo Ferreira were always going to praise the appointment of Big Phil Scolari as the new Chelsea manager, it’s naturally more interesting to hear the thoughts of the non-Portuguese players in the camp. Germany’s Michael Ballack has stepped forward [Read the rest of this entry »]

There was a mutual respect between Sir Alex Ferguson and Jose Mourinho, despite the latter’s best attempts to rub everyone up the wrong way with his constant press manipulation and ideas above his station. The Man United manager found his Chelsea counterpart amusing and put up with him over a bottle of red wine. [Read the rest of this entry »]

Yesterday, we reported that Ricardo Carvalho was being philosophical about his Chelsea future, with rumours linking him to Jose Mourinho and Internazionale. Not any more. The swift appointment of Luiz Felipe Scolari at Stamford Bridge has seen ‘Ricky’ become one of the most loyal players on the books all of a sudde, his future was clearly never in doubt after all.

The Daily Telegraph report that the central defender was shocked by the timing of the announcement, but is naturally delighted that his national team coach is taking the reigns at Stamford Bridge. Not least because he’s now in a position of strength at his club and will be the first name on the teamsheet.

“We were all shocked by the news. We heard the rumours but didn’t guess he would be going to Chelsea after the Euros.

“He is a great manager and a big personality. He’s the kind of guy that players respond to and I think we can go forward with him.”

Does this also strengthen Chelsea’s chances of landing Deco from Barcelona, and one or two other members of the Portugal squad? Carvalho, Ferreira and Bosingwa are already on the books at the Bridge, so Big Phil just needs Pepe to have a back four full of Portugeezers.

While John Terry gets most of the defensive plaudits from UK-based newspapers, who like to describe the whinging toddler as a warrior, hero and lots of other ridiculous things, one of the main reason why Chelsea are so stout at the back is down to Ricardo Carvalho, his partner in crime. The Portuguese defender might be a bit dirty, but he sure is effective and it’s little surprise to see Jose Mourinho over at Inter Milan declaring an interest in Ricky.

The Guardian report that the pair are close and that the centre-half has expressed a desire to play under his former manager in Italy. Which would come as a crushing blow to the Stamford Bridge club, despite some papers having you believe that ‘JT’ could cover two positions!

“I would love to play for Mr Mourinho again,” the defender said in Switzerland as he prepared for today’s Euro 2008 encounter between Portugal and the Czech Republic. “The majority of the trophies I’ve won in my career were with him.

“Sometimes a player needs a new challenge,” said Carvalho. “Having said that, I have a contract with Chelsea and I am happy there. I will talk to [the chief executive] Peter Kenyon after Euro 2008 and we will see what happens.”

Interesting words from Carvalho, who cost the Blues nearly £20million when he arrived from Porto four years ago. They have certainly got their money’s worth from the defender, although the signs are that he’s interested in jumping ship, leaving a yawning chasm in the Chelsea defence.

Looks like Chelsea will be operating a transfer merry-go-round this summer, with Didier Drogba being shown a door marked “bugger off” and Barcelona’s Samuel Eto’o being number one on the club’s wishlist as a replacement. The non-thinking man’s paper The Sun reckons that Chelsea will lob £22million Barcelona’s way and offer the 27-year-old Cameroonian £110,000-a-week.

CHELSEA will slug it out with old boss Jose Mourinho for Barcelona striker Samuel Eto’o.

Blues are set to move for the Cameroon star after agreeing to sell Didier Drogba to AC Milan for £18million.

But they face stiff competition from Mourinho and Inter Milan, who have also made Eto’o a top priority. (The Sun)

Eto’o definitely has the quality to replace Drogba and, like the Ivorian, he can throw a strop with the best of them. Looks like a good potential signing, if Chelsea can ward off the lurking interest of Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan.

Is Michael Essien the most underrated player in the Premier League? He certainly deserves more of the credit for Chelsea’s recent success, compared to Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard and John Terry. The Ghanaian will hope that his being deployed as a right-back has come to an end, now that Bosingwa is on the scene, why else would he have signed a brand new deal at Stamford Bridge?

Sky Sports report that Blues fans will be relieved that speculated interest from new Inter boss Jose Mourinho has come to nothing, and that one of their most important players will stay put.

“I will go back to Chelsea for the next season and expect to have a great season,” he said in the Sunday Mirror.

“We have shown as a club that we can handle disappointments, and I think we will be able to bounce back next season a better side.

“Most of the guys have gone on holidays and they will put the disappointment of the last season behind them.”

With Cristiano Ronaldo umming and aahing over a move to Real Madrid, Manchester United may no longer be a one-man band next season and they’d be considerably weaker as a result. Are Chelsea the favourites to win back the Premier League and perhaps even land the Champions League with their bottomless pot of cash?

There’s a pattern emerging here. Jose Mourinho leaves Chelsea, waits in the wilderness for a bit, then signs up for Inter. All of a sudden, speculation is rife that Lampard, Drogba, Essien, Cole, Terry and Cech (but not Sheva) could all be joining the arrogant loudmouth at his new club. Next thing, Mark Hughes is given permission to speak with Manchester City and, wait for it, the Daily Mirror put 2 + 2 together to come up with the below:

Once Hughes is installed as City boss, one of his first acts will be to try to persuade England midfielder Bentley and prolific goal-scorer Santa Cruz to move with him.

City tried to sign Santa Cruz last summer but were beaten to his capture by Blackburn, while £10m-rated Bentley has emerged as one of the country’s most impressive midfield talents.

Ten out of ten for predictability guys. Although it would be ironic if Hughes was to snare Bentley, especially as he has made recent utterances regarding the winger needing to honour his contract and be loyal to the club! If I were a Blackburn fan, I would be concerned by the news that Hughes is leaving and even more so if Rovers’ two best players jump off a potentially sinking ship.

According to multiple sources, Tottenham Hotspur are on the verge of bringing 20-year-old winger Diego Capel to White Hart Lane. They reportedly have agreed to meet the speedster’s buyout clause of 15 million euros. Electric sports reports:

Spurs are poised to confirm a deal to take the left-sided starlet to White Hart Lane having met the 15 million euros ($31.9 million) asking price, according to Diario de Sevilla.

Tottenham are believed to have agreed a four-year deal with the 20-year-old and he is keen to work with Spurs boss Juande Ramos once again after rising to prominence under him in Spain.

While many papers describe this as a done deal, there are still questions that need to be answered. Sevilla president Jose Maria del Nido claims that he has had no talks with Spurs, though sources seem to indicate that this may be untrue. Also, there is talk that Capel is high on the wish-list of a certain Portuguese megalomaniac, who is set to be the new boss of the champions of Serie A. Spurs seem keen to get this deal done before Jose Mourinho’s deal with Inter is completed to make sure he does not foil their plans.

Capel would be the third in a line of talented new midfielders who are likely to be with the club next year. Croatian playmaker Luka Modric has already signed a contract with the London side. Many expect ex-Barcelona phenom Giovani Dos Santos to also join the club this summer. Regardless of what Martin Jol thinks about Spurs’ chance to break into the top four this year, Spurs fans should rest easy knowing that new boss Juande Ramos is moving the team in the right direction.

Capel, like Modric and Dos Santos, is seen as a rising, while unproven star. Like the other two, there has been much debate in the press about how big of an impact he will make. He has been called the new Cristiano Ronaldo, and he has been called the next Jose Antonio Reyes. I expect that he will fall somewhere in the middle. I think this would be a great signing for Spurs, as he is a pacy player with tons of upside. What do you think?

Former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho has finally got himself a job and, as he eases himself into the Inter Milan hotseat, alarm bells should be sounding at Stamford Bridge. Word on the street is that the Special One is set to launch a raid on Chelsea, who exactly he’ll be signing depends what paper you read, but the Sun reckons that Michael Essien could be bidding adieu to playing right-back to mosey on over to Internazionale. And it doesn’t end there, The Sun says that Mourinho is to be given a “whopping” £100million to spend, and after he’s nabbed Essien he’ll try and grab loyal disciples Drogba and Essien too:

“Blues’ £24million midfielder Essien tops Mourinho’s hitlist before he turns his attention to two more Chelsea stars — Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard.

“The Premier League runners-up are expected to put up a fierce fight to keep their big names.

“But Mourinho wants Essien to be his midfield enforcer at the San Siro while the Ghana star would love to be reunited with his old boss.”

So if Jose does bid for all three, and all three want to leave, how easy will it be for Chelsea to keep hold of them?

Or does it not really matter whether a football club is prepared to bung a few extra quid in your pay packet when you’re positively rolling in it anyway? The Daily Mirror report that desperate times call for desperate measures and the Blues, fearful of a certain Portuguese football manager in charge of Internazionale, have offered Frank Lampard a whacking great salary to stay at Stamford Bridge. Will it be enough to keep a roof over the midfielder’s head?

Frank Lampard has been offered a new £130,000- a-week contract by Chelsea.

The Stamford Bridge club made the offer in a desperate bid to keep the England midfielder.

The new deal would put the 29-year-old’s pay on a par with John Terry’s, although the Chelsea captain has a longer contract.

Ultimately, while money talks in some instances, Lamps might have already made his mind up to leave London and join his old chum Mourinho in Italy. He’s been at Chelsea for a good few seasons and, after winning the Premier League a couple of times and featuring in a Champions League final, a change of scenery might be required at this stage of his career.