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LoginChelsea Outraged At Crafty Ancelotti's Snub
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CHELSEA DON`T TAKE REJECTION WELL
Chelsea believe they have been duped into thinking Carlo Ancelotti was prepared to become their new manager.
A day of intrigue and carefully-worded denials ended on Tuesday night with Chelsea being humiliatingly rebuffed by the AC Milan manager. It is understood that Ancelotti was - and may still be - the favoured candidate of Roman Abramovich and the Russian met with representatives of the 48-year-old in a Paris hotel on Monday.
Whether or not a formal offer was made is a matter of semantics; at the very least it was made abundantly clear that, if he moved to Stamford Bridge, Ancelotti could expect to be paid £6m a year - twice the sum he earns at Milan. Reports claim that the composition of Ancelotti's coaching staff and the transfer budget available in west London was also discussed.
However, in a dramatic twist last night, Ancelotti issued a statement declaring his intention to remain at Milan. "I'm 150 per cent certain I will stay," he announced following a lengthy meeting at the club's training ground with vice-president Adriano Galliani.
According to The Times, 'Many at Chelsea are privately furious at Ancelotti, believing that he has led them on to gain an improved contract at Milan. Chelsea did not deny speaking to him, stating only that they have not reached agreement with any manager or approached any club to speak to one of their employees. The club believe that there is no obligation under Fifa rules to ask permission before speaking to the manager of a foreign club, as there is in the Barclays Premier League.'
As a man not accustomed to the inconvenience of rejection, Abramovich is not yet ready to give up on his number one target. The Independent claims that 'Chelsea are still exploring possibilities under which they could do a deal - a £6m, four-year contract is the potential offer - and have not ruled Ancelotti out completely.'
What's Being Said
"I'm staying at AC Milan for sure, and for many seasons to come. I've not spoken to anyone at Chelsea" - Ancelotti."We are extremely happy how our search is progressing. Contrary to reports Chelsea Football Club has not reached agreement with any individual to become manager, nor have we sought permission from any organisation to talk to their manager" - Chelsea.
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BLUES TURN TO SPALLETTI
ROMA boss Luciano Spalletti has emerged as the firm favourite to succeed Avram Grant as the new manager at Stamford Bridge.
Spalletti was named this morning as the bookies favourite with odds of 5/2, leaving both Roberto Mancini and Frank Rijkarrd trailing behind him at 11/4. The Italian was thrust into the frame after AC Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti rejected Chelsea's £24 million offer and Mark Hughes agreed a three-year contract with Manchester City.
Ancelotti, who is the longest-tenured manager in Serie A, quashed rumours that he plans to leave the San Siro, dubbing the claims "fantasy football" and insisting he has no intention of moving from his home.
The 48-year-old said: "I don't want to move from AC Milan. "It is my home and I have had no contact with other clubs over the past few days."
While Hughes, who was also believed to be interested in a Chelsea deal after a successful four years at Rovers, signed a three-year-deal to Eastlands this morning. As a result, 49-year-old Spalletti has caught the eye of Roman Abramovich after leading Roma to second place in Serie A and is now first in the Blues line-up according to bookies William Hill.
Spalletti, who was Serie A's 2006 Coach of the Year, has attracted attention after revitalising the Udinese, leading them to fourth spot and a Champions League place. The young coach arrived at Roma in 2005, transforming them into an attacking force. He then went on to win them second place behind Inter Milan last season.
It is believed that Spalletti doesn't speak much English but it seems Roman Abramovich is determined to bring in a coach with more European pedigree. Roma will, of course, be reluctant to let Spalletti go but unlike AC Milan the club have major financial problems, with parent company, Italpetroli, having debts in the region of £300m. And hopes of a possible rescue by billionaire financier George Soros have been dashed - giving Spalletti another reason to leave.Edited by zocoss 05 Jun `08, 10:24AM
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SPALLETTI LATEST TO SAY NO
Roma coach Luciano Spalletti has become the latest contender to be Chelsea's next manager to rule himself out of the running.
The odds on Spalletti fell dramatically earlier this week in the wake of Manchester City appointing Mark Hughes, once considered the favourite to replace Avram Grant, and Carlo Ancelotti committing himself to AC Milan. However, The Guardian reports that, although Spalletti's agent held 'informal talks with Chelsea officials in Paris', the '49-year-old manager has since made it clear privately that he does not wish to proceed with discussions'.
Spalletti is believed to feel that he lacks the experience required for such a job and has misgivings about the standard of his English.
Language concerns are also reported to have caused Chelsea to look beyond Marcello Lippi, although, given the number of withdrawals, they may now have no option but to turn back towards Roberto Mancini, Frank Rijkaard and Didier Deschamps despite their candidature hitherto failing to impress the Stamford Bridge hierarchy.
Luiz Felipe Scolari remains in the frame, although there must surely be misgivings about appointing the Portugal manager on account of his refusal to start the job until after Euro 2008.
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