Joe Cole's Chelsea Departure A Product Of UEFA's New Initiatives

The England playmaker has a lot of friends at Stamford Bridge but with clubs urged to tighten their belts there was only going to be one outcome.

The announcement that Joe Cole is to leave Chelsea when his contract runs out at the end of June was hardly the biggest surprise in the football world yet it would be interesting to find out the reasons behind his departure.

It is clear that his lack of starting opportunities in the latter part of the Blues’ double-winning season must have had a bearing on his decision with the gifted playmaker largely being reduced to cameos from the substitutes’ bench.

One match he did start was the pivotal match at Old Trafford in early April where he opened the scoring with an outrageous back-heel.

That moment seemed to make his rehabilitation complete but he was only to start one more Premier League match – the 2-1 defeat at Tottenham that so nearly derailed the west Londoners’ title challenge.

Malouda: Sub Role Highly Frustrating

Florent Malouda found it "frustrating" to be kept on the bench until the last 15 minutes of Friday night's World Cup stalemate with Uruguay.

France failed to win in their opening group match for the third successive World Cup as Raymond Domenech's mis-firing side failed to find a way past their Group A opponents at Green Point Stadium in Cape Town.

Domenech deployed Malouda, Thierry Henry and Andre Pierre Gignac off the bench but the Chelsea forward admits it was disappointing to come on with just 15 minutes left.

"It's frustrating," he said. "But that's life. I hope I get a chance to show my quality.

"Hopefully we can take this (point) as an opportunity to move on. That will be important."

After Group A rivals South Africa and Mexico drew 1-1 in yesterday's early match, Domenech believes it is they who hold the advantage.

"We lacked that last bit, the last pass," Domenech admitted. "We had to guard against an unlucky counter (by the opposition).

"It is almost a beautiful 0-0, but the result is what it is. They were good, solid in defence."

Uruguay striker Diego Forlan had a few opportunities for the South Americans, whose emphasis was on keeping tight and looking to counter.

France, though, had chances to win the game, not least in the seventh minute when winger Sidney Govou somehow side-footed wide from close range after Franck Ribery's teasing left-wing cross.

The outgoing France boss added: "The other two have the advantage."

Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez, whose side were not bullied in terms of possession by the 1998 champions, said: "The pitch was not particularly good. It created some problems for us controlling the ball.

"Bearing in mind what happened in the game and that France, a recent world champion who are very well organised and prepared, I think it is not a bad result, bearing all this in mind.

"The results in the second round of matches are now more important because both opening matches ended in draws."

Tabarez was forced to defend his team's discipline on the eve of the match and had to do the same last night after substitute Nicolas Lodeiro was sent off for two bookings.

"I think football is one thing, and behaviour on the pitch is a different kettle of fish," he said. "Theoretically, any card is avoidable but I was once a player and I know what it is like to be out there. So I understand my players' point of view."

Krasic Set To Disappoint Top Boys

Any hopes that Arsenal, Man Utd, Man City, or Chelsea may have had about signing Milos Krasic appear to be at an end.

All four clubs had been on the lookout for the CSKA Moscow star but he appears to have his heart set on a move to Italy with Juventus the most likely destination.

The playmaker, who will feature in Serbia's World Cup opener against Ghana, said: "Yes, I want to play in Italy. I don't know what team, but I want to go there. I have heard about Juventus."

Cole Backs Lampard Goal Formula

England star Joe Cole believes the key to his team's success in the World Cup finals is the goalscoring exploits of Frank Lampard.

Cole is hoping to feature against the USA in England's Group C opener and believes Lampard will be unstoppable in the tournament if he finds the net in Rustenburg.

Lampard failed to score in the 2006 finals in Germany, despite playing every minute of his country's venture to the quarter-finals, and Cole says it is important his midfield colleagues share the burden of finding the net.

Cole said: "The best thing that would happen for England is for Frank to score in the first game. If he gets one he gets on a roll.

"He seems to score his goals in bunches and if we are going to do something in this tournament we are going to need Frankie to score two, three or four goals.

"We are also going to need Wazza (Wayne Rooney) to score four or five and ones and twos chipped in from everyone else because we are going to need goals from the midfield."

Cole's involvement in the tournament had been in doubt after a frustrating season at Chelsea as his hopes were hampered by a combination of injury and lack of game time.

The winger is fit and in contention to start after displaying a late burst of form in the Three Lions' pre-tournament training camp to make it into manager Fabio Capello's final squad.

But the former West Ham star said he was not content with just being involved in South Africa, revealing his desire to end England's barren run without major international silverware.

Cole, who is leaving Chelsea, added: "You might not play in a World Cup again and you don't like the idea of your lasting memory being a bad one. You want to finish well and look back on a good one.

"If it is the last one I play, we'll put everything in there to make sure it's as good as it can be. We all know the names of the 1966 winning team.

"There's been many a great English player that hasn't won a World Cup or a European Championship since then, and they'll still go down in history. But if you want to do the group thing, you have to win something."

England's Ashley Cole Can't Wait To Face Landon Donovan After Broken Leg

Part of Ashley Cole’s motivation to be fit for the World Cup was that he could face Landon Donovan, according to United States striker Charlie Davies. Donovan was involved in the incident in which Cole broke his leg in February.

Davies spent three weeks with Cole at a clinic in Capbreton, France, along with Michael Essien, as the trio worked on their fitness ahead of this month’s tournament.

Neither Davies nor Ghana’s Essien made it, but Cole did. Davies, who failed to recover after being badly injured in a car crash last year, said: “Not only did he want to get back because it’s the World Cup, but especially because Landon was the one who broke his ankle.”

Cole’s ankle was fractured when he challenged for the ball with Donovan during the league match between Chelsea and Everton. It was not a malicious tackle but, from Davies’s words, it would appear that Cole holds Donovan – who was on loan at Goodison Park – responsible for the injury.

It adds an intriguing sideshow to the clash between England and the USA especially as Donovan is likely to line up on the right of midfield for the Americans. Indeed, Donovan will shoulder much of the responsibility for how the US fare and has said he is looking forward to the challenge, and hoping to capitalise on any English complacency.

“When you think of the history of the World Cup, England is historically a team that has done relatively well, who have always gotten out of the group stage and a country like the US, to them it’s a guaranteed victory,” he said.

“There are some people that you can tell that there is a sense of nerves about them that, 'Uh oh. Maybe we could lose this game,’ but I probably think most of the players think as long as we show up and play a decent game we are going to win this game.”

Striker DaMarcus Beasley said that the Americans “like being underdogs” when it comes to football as they proved last year in reaching the final of the Confederations Cup. “We need to get good results in big tournaments to get us that respect,” he said.

“The Confederations Cup gave us a big boost psychologically. We beat teams like Spain and Egypt and could have beaten Brazil.

“England are one of the favourites. I’m sure it would be a massive shock even if we got a draw. But the World Cup brings its own pressures. There are always first-round surprises and we are looking to be one of them.”

Beasley, like several American players, has a British connection, having played for Manchester City and Rangers. He admitted that Wayne Rooney was probably better known in the US than most of their own players. “We will try everything we can to beat England but they do have the better players,” Beasley said.

Didier Drogba Misses Training To Visit Doctors

Ivory Coast captain Didier Drogba sits out training as a precaution to rest his broken arm ahead of the Elephants opening game against Portugal.

The Ivory Coast face the Portuguese in Port Elizabeth on Tuesday and the Chelsea star faces a race to be fit for the match after breaking his arm in a World Cup warm-up game against Japan in Switzerland.

He underwent an operation in Berne on June 5.

The Ivory Coast team trained at the George Thabe Stadium here in Sharpeville, south of Johannesburg, under coach Sven-Goran Eriksson, while Drogba stayed back at the hotel to receive treatment.

"Didier is back in the hands of the doctors, but that doesn't mean anything for the game against Portugal," a member of the Ivory Coast staff told AFP.

The same source said Eriksson will decide at the last possible moment whether to play the Chelsea striker against Portugal.

Eriksson Waits On Drogba

Ivory Coast manager Sven Goran Eriksson will not force Didier Drogba to face Portugal if the striker is not considered to be fit to play.

It was feared the Chelsea star's World Cup was over after he was forced to undergo surgery on a broken arm sustained in a warm-up match against Japan.

But Ivory Coast remain hopeful that their captain will be able to feature against Portugal on Tuesday after he returned to training with the aid of a protective cast.

Eriksson needs his best players as he attempts to guide his side out of Group G, this summer's 'Group of Death', however, he will allow Drogba to make his own decision on his fitness.

"I can't confirm that Didier Drogba will face Portugal, even though the recovery is going well," said the former England coach.

"And I have certainly thought about putting in place a Plan B.

"But the decision to play will depend on Didier himself and the specialists that are following him."

Summary Of A Season: Deco

Carlo Ancelotti's arrival and the switch to a diamond formation looked like it would be beneficial for Deco, who had opted to stay at Stamford Bridge despite summer interest from Inter. What many didn't expect though was to see the playmaker employed at the base of the diamond in our first pre-season game, his passing ability utilised from deep to launch attacks in Seattle.

What works against MLS sides may not be so effective against Premier League ones though, and he found himself beginning the campaign on the bench, before a first start at Sunderland where he gave a display of sharp passing and finishing, netting from 25 yards to wrap up a pleasing away win.

A calf injury on international duty saw him sit out a few weeks before returning to help us beat Liverpool, setting Didier Drogba away down the left to cross for Nicolas Anelka's opening goal. He laid on again for Drogba at Aston Villa, but then missed a chance himself that would have earned a draw.

Deco's best form of the season came in two games against Bolton at the end of October, occasions where he completed 90 minutes (this happened 11 times this season) within a few days of each other.

In the first he smashed a tidy shot into the bottom corner, in the second he completed a superb breakaway by cutting inside his man and curling home, before contributing to one of the best team goals of the season, chesting the ball to Frank Lampard who flicked over the defence for Drogba to volley home. This game was Deco at his very best.

Returning from a month off in the deep role against Preston in the FA Cup in January , he kept his position against Birmingham in the league and provided a disciplined shield in front of the defence while offering a convenient start point for attacks in a 3-0 win.

Fitness was proving an issue though and there was another month on the sidelines into March, before a return at Portsmouth in a 4-2-3-1 shape. The switch proved effective as first Pompey were crushed, and then Aston Villa demolished 7-1, the little Portuguese superb with his passing, notably in playing in Yury Zhirkov to cross for Florent Malouda with the outside of his right boot, through the tightest of gaps in the visiting defence.

A week later he was impressive again against Manchester United at Old Trafford, playing an important but understated role in maintaining possession, but a hamstring problem forced him out of the last month of the campaign meaning Deco was, much like in his first season, unable to get a regular run in the side that could bring out his best consistently.

Brilliant in flashes, Deco offered both flair and control when he was available, but the 20 games missed due to injury tell their own story. A run of fitness would surely bring even more impact next time around.

The Blues' Bleus Get The Blues

The World Cup began in lacklustre fashion for Chelsea's French pair of Nicolas Anelka and Florent Malouda on Friday evening, with a 0-0 draw against Uruguay.

Anelka started the game but was withdrawn before the end after cutting a frustrated figure in attack, while Malouda was surprisingly left on the bench until the final quarter-hour.

Malouda's exclusion was the shock news before the game, after an apparent fall-out with controversial coach Raymond Domenech, and so Arsenal's Abou Diaby started in a midfield three instead, Anelka the lone forward with Franck Ribery and Sidney Govou either side.

It was Govou that should have opened the scoring after just six minutes when Ribery squared across the Uruguay six-yard box, but the Lyon forward tapped wide when the goal looked unmissable.

Uruguay forward, ex-Manchester United man Diego Forlan, forced a smart save from French stopper Hugo Lloris at the other end before Yoann Gourcuff, who played against Chelsea during 2008/09 for Bordeaux, went close with a curling free-kick.

Four minutes before half-time the Chelsea forward got across his man inside the area, but glanced his header just wide after Govou had crossed from the right.

On the hour, a cross from the other flank by Ribery picked Anelka out, but it was slightly too high and he could only divert it over.

That was to be Anelka's last major input, and he was replaced with 19 minutes remaining by Thierry Henry.

Moments later Forlan could have won it for the Uruguayans but snatched at his shot, and then it was time for Malouda to enter the action, 16 minutes from time, surprising given his excellent form this season and the uninspiring display from those around him.

The wide man did manage to flash a shot across goal, but could make no major difference on a disappointing night for the French.

Before the end, Uruguay sub Nicolas Lodeiro was dismissed for a second yellow after a heavy challenge on Arsenal right-back Bacary Sagna, meaning he will be suspended for Uruguay's next match.