JustChelsea.com

Yesterdays rumour of the imminent transfer of Pato to Chelsea was, as expected, a made-up story from the Sunday papers. I would love to know who these “insiders” are that keep giving false information to the press. Unless of course they are made up by the journalists too.

Anyway, AC Milan have issued an official denial on their website just to set the record straight.

Despite a very clear message from Carlo Ancelotti that Chelsea will not be buying anyone else this season (not that he can be believed), the News of the World has come up with this crazy idea that Chelsea will pay AC Milan £45m for Pato, and let them keep him in Italy until next summer!

Now this is the winner of the most-ridiculous-rumour award for August, and we are only seven days into the month!

The Italian made-up gossip mag Corriere Dello Sport published a story saying that Chelsea had offered Essien to AC Milan to tempt them to part with Andrea Pirlo, despite the club saying that he wasn’t for sale, and the player stating that he wanted to end his career at Milan.

At last a bit of good news on the transfer front. Chelsea have failed in their bid to bring an aging Italian midfielder to Stamford Bridge! I can understand Carlo Ancelotti wanting a familiar face in the dressing room, but the arrival of another non-English speaking player into a settled team would probably have caused more probems than solutions. The present midfield is more than good enough (and experienced in the Premiership) to handle whatever gets thrown at them, so i could never see the point of pursuing the overpriced Pirlo in the first place.

In what is possibly the shortest football article ever in todays Sun, they report that AC Milan have turned down a (fictitious!) offer from Chelsea for Andrea Pirlo.

The report IN FULL said: CHELSEA have failed in a bid to sign AC Milan midfielder Andrea Pirlo.
The Italian club turned down the offer of £12.5million, plus Claudio Pizarro.

A Milan insider said: “He’s worth £35m.”

I don’t know where the Daily Mail dreams their stories up, but they just get wilder and wilder! Look at this one…..

Chelsea have been linked with an £8.6million move for AC Milan midfielder Andrea Pirlo that would see Claudio Pizarro and England Under 21 defender Michael Mancienne go in the other direction.

Chelsea met Carlo Ancelotti’s old team in front of 70,000 fans in Baltimore, with Yuri Zhirkov starting his first game for the Blues on the left side of the new diamond formation, and with Drogba and Anelka in attack.

Chelsea started the game in a lively fashion, and Drogba had the crowd on their feet after just seven minutes when he belted the ball in from outside the area.

John Obi Mikel has been talking about how pleased he is that Chelsea have given him a contract extension that will keep him tied to the club until 2014, and is looking forward to the new season under Ancelotti.

He said yesterday: “I think I am very pleased with the way things have gone for me since I have got here, every season I am improving and I am very pleased with the new contract and hope things go like last season, even better,”

Chelsea will face AC Milan in their third tour match tomorrow, and Carlo Ancelotti has announced that Yuri Zhirkov is now eligible to play for the team. He will be playing on the left side of the new diamond formation against Ancelotti’s old team, and the new Chelsea coach is looking at this game as something special.

Frankie Lampard was asked in an interview if he thought that new boss Carlo Ancelotti would have a problem with following the massive success that Jose Mourinho had in his few years at Chelsea, and Frank responded by saying that there shouldn’t be a problem, because Ancelotti has already been more successful, winning two Champions League trophies already!