The Chelsea Daily Drival - Tuesday 8th June

The Chelsea Daily Drivel is a daily update of all the stories concerning our club, the rumours, the opinions and more....

So here is the latest from around the web on Tuesday 8th June 2010 including: Redknapp wants Joe Cole, David Silva, Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, Diego, Michael Ballack, John Mikel Obi and updates on Didier Drogba.

Firstly to the news that Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp has declared his interest in Joe Cole. Harry last week spoke of Joe and felt that he got the impression that a deal had already been agreed with someone else. Redknapp told ESPN:

Yes, I am prepared to declare my interest in Joe Cole, why not, he is a great player, his contract is up and he is on a free transfer. I have genuinely not spoken to Joe about coming to Spurs, he is at the World Cup and quite rightly he needs to concentrate on trying to win it with England. But when he returns I would love to talk to him about coming to Spurs.

For free he would be a fantastic signing for anybody, and I have seen him linked with Arsenal and Manchester United among others, which just shows you the quality of the player. From my point of view I have been linked with dozens of players but I am not in any hurry, there are no moves pending and it's all very quiet for a change, I am not in any moves for anyone.

I know people will say that is not like me, but in the past I have had turned up to inherit crap teams and had to work hard to turn it all around and improve them, which meant a lot of buying and selling. But not now at Spurs, I don't. I am looking for the right player to make a difference, and so I would have to say that Joe Cole is one of the few players who would fit into that category.

But I don't know if he will stay at Chelsea eventually, that they might make him the offer that he accepts when he comes back from the World Cup. We shall have to wait and see, but for sure he would be the right option for me, if it was possible."

Joe Cole yesterday showed signs of his class and most importantly of all, played the whole game as Fabio Capello made 10 changes to the team at half time in Englands final World Cup warm up match. Joe was lively all game and scored to make it 2-0 after good link up play with Wayne Rooney. Let's hope based on that performance, Joe has cemented his place in the starting eleven for Saturday against the USA.

Next to speculation regarding the future of Valencia starlet David Silva. Valencia have already sold David Villa to Barcelona for 34 Million and its no secret the club has financial problems which is one of the reasons Villa left. Now it seems the attention has turned to Silva. He has said:

My future right now is with the international team and I do not think beyond that, I am devoting myself to training ahead of the World Cup - that is the most important thing, nothing else. The club (Valencia) is in a difficult situation but we did well to get into the Champions League, which was important.

I have a contract signed up to 2013 and I do not have any problems with the club, I have heard about the interest from the Premier League - but any questions will be answered by my agent and the club"

Next it appears that Carlo Ancelotti's name is now being linked with Dutch international Klaas-Jan Huntelaar. There is reports that a whole host of Premier League managers are keeping an eye on developments with Huntelaar and his situation at AC Milan. Recently though, he has committed his future to Milan but we are yet to see what happens as the new Milan manager comes in and evaluates the squad. This is one to keep an eye on maybe. However with the rumours of Torres getting stronger and stronger this could be just pure speculation to get the player a move elsewhere.

Next Italian daily paper Tuttosport is reporting that Juventus General Manager Beppe Marotta has given Chelsea the go-ahead to make an offer for Brazilian attacking midfielder Diego. He is reported as saying:

“There are offers for Diego… Del Neri’s tactical requirements have the priority and I don’t think the Brazilian fits into the 4-4-2, Faced with an impressive offer, I believe we could sell him”.

Now more on the Michael Ballack contract situation. The Guardian is reporting that there seems to be a stand off between Chelsea and Ballack and his advisors and clubs in Dubai backed by financial muscle are looking to capitalise. One of the clubs in Dubai, Al Ahli, announced the signing of Italian World Cup winner Fabio Cannavaro. The clubs there are looking to raise the profile of football in the middle east and a source from the UAE Pro League told the Guardian:

"The clubs here know there are some top names from the Premier League who have reached the end of their time there and are looking for a final move. They are ambitious. Michael Ballack has been approached and he is now the No1 target for clubs. In Italy the chance of bringing [Gennaro] Gattuso here from Milan is being looked at and Cannavaro coming will help that. Inquiries have also been made about Guti at Real Madrid."

Could this be the perfect swansong for Ballack and a profitable one at that. The stumbling block at Chelsea seems to be the length of the contract offered to him. He wants two years while the club are only reported to have offered a 12-month deal.

Next and John Mikel Obi has explained his decision to not play in the World Cup that only just around the corner. As reported on here recently Mikel pulled out of the squad and became the third Chelsea player to miss the tournament through injury after Michael Ballack and Michael Essien. Mikel explained his decision. He said:

"I withdrew from the World Cup because of the love I have for my country, Nigeria. Although, it was a painful decision, I had to take a bow in order to save the nation from embarrassment when the tournament begins and also to give other players the opportunity to save their fatherland at the Mundial.

By remaining in the team, I would not have played, while others who would have brought in something would be deprived simply because of my presence in the team. So to save the nation and to give other players the chance to represent the country, I had to withdraw in other not to jeopardize the country's chances of doing well in South Africa

Finally to the update regarding the injury sustained to Didier Drogba. As we all know Drogba was injured in a shocking challenge last week against Japan and broke his arm. He had surgery over the weekend which reportedly went well and he will link up with the squad in the next few days. A spokesperson for the Ivory Coast party said:

"His recovery has been extremely encouraging, It is suggested that, at this stage, all the signs are good and there is great hope the captain of the Elephants will be in action with his team-mates as soon as possible."

Let's hope the recovery is good for Didier and he is able to take part in the World Cup.

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