Adrian Mutu Ordered To Pay Chelsea €17Million Compensation Rules Swiss Court

Fiorentina striker Adrian Mutu has been told he will have to pay Chelsea €17million in compensation in relation to his cocaine case after losing his appeal, the Swiss Federal Court said in a statement on Monday.

Mutu was sacked by Chelsea in 2004 after he tested positive for cocaine. And, after a five year legal case, Switzerland's Supreme Court upheld the CAS decision (Court for Arbitration in Sport) that he must pay compensation to the Premier League club.

Mutu had appealed to the CAS against FIFA's decision to award Chelsea compensation following his sacking because he breached his contract.

The CAS upheld FIFA's decision last year, leaving Mutu to appeal to the Swiss court. However, their decision this morning means he will have to pay the English club.

A statement from the court reads:

"It reached the conclusion that this was not the case and the Romanian footballer's appeal was unfounded."

The Associated Press claims the striker has been ordered to pay €17,173,990 plus an annual interest of five percent applied from 2008. He will also have to pay the legal fees of €104,000.

Mutu is currently banned following a double doping test failure in January. Last week Fiorentina confirmed he was for sale.

Hamburg To Challenge Manchester United For Ballack

Following reports yesterday that Manchester United will offer Michael Ballack a one-year contract, German daily Bild claims that Hamburg are doing all that they can to lure the 33-year-old.

The Germany captain was released last week by Chelsea after four years at Stamford Bridge. Ballack had rejected a 12-month extension to his Chelsea contract, wanting a two-year deal instead.

Newspaper reports in the UK yesterday speculated that Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson would look to bring Ballack to Old Trafford for an initial year, with the option of an extension.

However, Bild claims that Hamburg have set their sights on Ballack. The club has apparently enlisted the help of billionaire supporter Klaus-Michael Kuehne, who currently lives in Switzerland, to fund the deal.

Ballack himself has refused to express a preference for Manchester United, Hamburg or any other club, telling Bild, "I have some offers… and will sort the requests in the coming week."

Ballack scored four goals in 38 appearances for Chelsea last season, but was ruled out of the World Cup having suffered an ankle injury during the FA Cup final.

Yossi Benayoun Set For Chelsea Move

Liverpool midfielder Yossi Benayoun is close to quitting Anfield in favour of joining Premier League champions Chelsea.

The 30-year-old Israeli winger has been holding talks over a £6million switch to Stamford Bridge with Blues boss Carlo Ancelotti.

Benayoun — who scored six goals in 30 games for the Reds last season — is expected to move to west London on a four-year deal.

Last month, the former West Ham star said: "Ancelotti wants me for next season and now everything depends on Liverpool.

"Chelsea will have to pay some £6million but I believe that in the end I'll be moving there."

Chelsea Chase £16m Brazilian Striker

Carlo Ancelotti is reportedly interested in signing Brazilian striker Nilmar and is ready to make a move for the Villarreal man this summer as he looks to bring in new attacking options as long term replacements for ageing strike duo Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka.

25 year old Nilmar moved to the La Liga last summer and has a decent first season at Villarreal but the Castellon side may feel the need to sell after failing to secure European football for next term. The former Lyon man is sure to be interested in a move to the Premier League champions and could feel that a move is necessary in order to further his career progression and to help force his way into the Brazilian international starting eleven.

Roman Abramovich is happy to invest in squad improvements and after removing big earners Joe Cole and Michael Ballack from the wage bill the west London club can surely afford to bring in younger players to help balance out a rapidly ageing squad.

Joe Cole Highest Paid At The Emirates

Joe Cole will be offered a massive £135,000-a-week deal with Arsenal once he returns from World Cup duty with England.

Arsene Wenger has put together a whopping financial package that would make the former Chelsea star the highest-paid player at The Emirates.

We can reveal that Cole, 28, has only to sign on a free transfer and agree a four-year package worth £20million.

The deal works out at £4m a year plus an additional £2.5m a year in signing on fees.

That is what will boost his earnings to the whopping weekly wage that would take him past wantaway Gunners captain Cesc Fabregas – on £110,000 a week – as the biggest earner at the club.

The offer is sure to wreck Harry Redknapp’s bid to try to land Cole, with Tottenham unable to match the big money Arsenal are prepared to pay.

Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool were also said to be in the frame but it is the Gunners who will get their man, as the Daily Star Sunday revealed two weeks ago.

Cole suffered a serious injury last year and when he returned from the treatment table he did not figure as much as he would have liked in Carlo Ancelotti’s sides. And the Stamford Bridge boss refused to meet Cole’s wage demands of £120,000 a week to bring him in line with Frank Lampard and John Terry.

Cole scored the decisive goal of Chelsea’s Premier League title success against rivals United at Old Trafford in April.

And he made 26 top-flight Blues appearances but only started 14. He clearly did not do enough for Ancelotti to warrant a huge pay hike.

Now speculation is rife that Cole’s arrival in north London could help Fabregas, 23, in his wish to rejoin boyhood idols Barcelona, although Wenger wants to keep the Spaniard.

A source revealed: “The offer is on the table and has been agreed in principle by both parties.

“The only way Joe won’t go to Arsenal is if he suffers an injury during the World Cup or another club comes in with an improved offer late on.

“Arsene is mindful that Joe spent a long time out with a serious knee injury but if he comes through England’s campaign in South Africa then he knows he is completely over that.

“What he likes about Joe is his versatility. It could be argued that his arrival might take the pain out of losing Fabregas to Barcelona. That and around £45m, which is what they’ll have to spend to get him.”

Chelsea Defender Branislav Ivanovic Insists Serbia Can Bounce Back

Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic believes Serbia can recover from their World Cup opening 1-0 defeat against Ghana on Sunday and stun Germany in the next game.

Asamoah Gyan's 84th-minute penalty settled the match in favour of the Black Stars after Serbia had been reduced to 10 men when Aleksandar Lukovic picked up a second booking.

Serbia now face an uphill battle to make it through to the last 16 and they face a real fight on their hands in their next Group D outing against Germany, who thrashed Australia 4-0, on Friday.

Ivanovic conceded it was a major blow to lose their opening match but is optimistic his side can turn things around ahead of the clash against the Germans in Port Elizabeth.

He said: 'When you lose it's very difficult, we were playing our first game of the World Cup against a very strong team and we lost, but we have the power to recover after this game and prepare well for the next game.'

Ivanovic also still has faith his side can secure one of the top two berths in Group D and a place in the knockout stages.

'We have to think like that. We are here out at the World Cup to show how anything is possible. Germany, of course, are a very strong team so we have to show that we can play against the big teams.'

Deco Keen To Take On Drogba

Portugal midfielder Deco is hoping for a World Cup reunion with Chelsea team-mate Didier Drogba in Port Elizabeth on Tuesday.

Ivory Coast striker Drogba is facing a race against time to recover from the broken arm he suffered in the run-up to the finals, and the Africans are playing their cards close to their chest ahead of the Group G clash at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.

However, while many of his compatriots could be forgiven for hoping that the former Marseille hitman misses out, Deco will be happy to lock horns with him.

"I haven't spoken to Didier and I don't now if he is going to play tomorrow, but I hope so because he is a friend," said Deco.

"He is a good player. He's a friend of mine and a Chelsea player. If he plays, it will be good for the game. I hope he plays."

There were initial fears that Drogba's tournament could be over before it had begun when he first sustained the injury during the Ivory Coast's warm-up game against Japan in Switzerland on June 4.

But, following successful surgery, there is a growing belief that he could yet have a significant role to play in South Africa, and Portugal coach Carlos Queiroz has been in the game too long to be surprised if his name appears on the teamsheet tomorrow afternoon.

Queiroz said: "What is important for me as the coach of the Portuguese national team is to worry about my own players.

"Obviously, I'm not a doctor, so I can't sat if Didier Drogba is going to be playing. It is a fracture and the doctors from the Ivory Coast together with [coach] Mr [Sven-Goran] Eriksson will have to make that decision.

"But, after 30 years in football, there's nothing that surprises me. Whether he plays or not, nothing would surprise me."

The Portugal squad flew into Port Elizabeth from Johannesburg this afternoon and headed straight to the stadium to train, but they did so with Manchester United midfielder Nani back in Lisbon nursing a shoulder injury.

He has been quoted as saying he could be fit again within a week, sparking rumours that his departure from South Africa was for reasons other than his fitness.

They have been firmly denied by the Portuguese camp, though, and Queiroz was not being drawn into the debate today.

He said: "Tomorrow, we are going to be playing the Ivory Coast in our first game in the World Cup.

"If Nani is ready in four days, that's wonderful, but the most important thing is for us to focus on our goal tomorrow.

"So, with all due respect to Nani, that is what we are focusing on.

"We can talk about that [the Nani situation] later."

On that subject, Deco admitted he and his team-mates were in the dark.

He said: "What I heard was that he [Nani] broke his shoulder and that it would be difficult for him to be ready to play because the recuperation time would be quite long.

"As players, we don't really have that kind of information. We speak to Nani and it's obvious that any player who is out feels a lot of frustration and in his case, I am sure he's feeling that way.

"He was hoping to have played and he still hopes to be able to play."

Portugal have been drawn into a tough group with Brazil, Ivory Coast and North Korea, and Queiroz knows there will be a major fight for the two available berths in the last 16.

He said: "With all due respect to North Korea, there are three teams for two places.

"We could be the best three teams at the World Cup, but the regulations only allow two to go forward.

"What is important is that we win tomorrow. A World Cup is something that doesn't allow you to make mistakes, so from the beginning, we want to get the three points.

"But we have nine points to play for and the first three points are as important as the last."

Summary Of A Season: Didier Drogba

From the moment his two-goal salvo turned a deficit into victory on the opening day versus Hull, the signs were good that Didier Drogba could pick up where he left off the previous season when a drifting Chelsea career was set firmly back on course under Guus Hiddink.

The early season formation adopted by the Dutchman's successor, Carlo Ancelotti, allowed Drogba to play close to Nicolas Anelka, and he had previously expressed a preference for a strike partner. At Fulham in the second away game each set up the other for a goal in a 2-0 win.

Then at Stoke the tried and tested link up with Frank Lampard was in full working order as Drogba latched onto the midfielder's clever pass and sent a truly unstoppable left-footed drive into the far corner.

The striker was now locked into an incredibly consistent run of scoring. By Christmas he had found the net 18 times in 21 games with only seven blank matches among them.

At Wigan he scored his 100th Chelsea goal on his 225th appearance although it was also the season's first defeat. Drogba described it as the worst performance since he'd joined in 2004. He had a point.

His Champions League campaign began in a familiar fashion - with a suspension - but when he did kick-off in Europe, he looked to have turned around a match in Madrid with two goals until Atletico's Sergio Aguero struck for a second time on the night.

In late November our Number 11 was an accessory to what many marked down as the most deluded moment of the season - Arsene Wenger declaring 'Drogba didn't do much' following Chelsea's 3-0 defeat of Arsenal - our best result at their stadium since the previous visit there!

The Gunners' manager did commend the player's efficiency, which included opening the scoring, pressuring one of his defenders into an own goal and then rifling in a free-kick.

All was going well at the point and the team had a clear lead in the league table but there followed a December downturn in results before Drogba signed off for a month of international duty with a goal at home to Fulham.

Against the predictions of the doom merchants, Chelsea flourished in the absence of our Africans although the fixtures could have been tougher. Ivory Coast didn't flourish in Angola and it cost their manager his job.

On his early return to club duty at Hull, Drogba scored his third direct free-kick of the season but the result was a disappointing draw following five straight wins. The first murmured questions began. Did Carlo Ancelotti have a conundrum to think about? Does the team actually play better without their most potent attacker?

There was no doubting he was to be first on the team sheet for the next game - Arsenal at home - and he duly landed another double whammy on the north Londoners. The second goal was Drogba at his rampaging best and made it 12 goals in 12 games against Arsenal.

Results were up and down in February and March. Drogba went three games without scoring which was a close as he came to a barren spell in 2009/10. Anelka's goals following a healthy December and January, had dried up completely.

As Champions League ambition faded once again, Drogba was sent off near the end of defeat by Inter, maintaining his now nearly traditional ban for the start of the next Euro campaign. It was his one red card of the season.

Having scored two at Portsmouth a week later, Drogba was rested for a visit by Villa which Chelsea won 7-1. It was the game before a potentially season-defining match at Old Trafford, and in the days in between he suffered injury and missed some training.

Recovered sufficiently to make the journey, the manager decided to use his top scorer as a second-half substitute and reaped the reward. A good team performance throughout was capped by what proved to be a Drogba winner.

By now, and like so many previous seasons, back in the middle of a three-man attack, the lacklustre display at Spurs was happily a blip in the season's run-in.

The high-scoring victories (of which there were a few) had strangely been by achieved by a Drogba-less team line-up, but that was remedied when he was part of a 7-0 win over Stoke , even if he didn't make the score sheet that day.

A Steven Gerrard assist at Liverpool put Chelsea on the threshold of the league title and Drogba poised to snatch the Golden Boot out of the grasp of Wayne Rooney.

An historic 8-0 win and a second-half hat-trick was the way to do it, even if the first 45 minutes did contain a moment of anxiety about his personal tally for our centre-forward.

His winner in the FA Cup Final meant the season had a pair of Ivorian bookends - a Drogba goal at its start and at its finish.

Voted Player of the Year by the fans, Drogba's 37 goals is the second best total in Chelsea history and included strikes at Anfield, the Emirates and Old Trafford. He also notched his sixth goal in six Wembley finals and seventh in all cup finals - a club record.

Now aged 32 and with (if his broken arm allows) a World Cup campaign this summer, there will be people doubting Drogba has another season in him like the trophy and goal-laden one just past.