Outcast Deco issues an ultimatum to Ancelotti but Cole set to pen new deal
OUT-OF-FAVOUR Chelsea midfielder Deco has warned boss Carlo Ancelotti that things must change if he is to stay at Stamford Bridge.
The Portugal international has been linked with a move away from the west London club after enduring a disappointing debut season in the Premier League.
Playmaker Deco, 32, made just three appearances during Guus Hiddink’s short reign at the club but has been left in limbo after Chelsea priced him out of a move to join former boss Jose Mourinho at Inter Milan.
Now, the Brazil-born star says he is prepared for one last crack at regular first-team football before making a return to his homeland.
“I am getting tired of Europe, but out of respect for Chelsea, I will stay on this continent a while longer,” he said. “I have some offers from other clubs, but if I stay at Chelsea it’s important that some things change because things happened last year that I did not like. I have had some adaptation problems in England.”
Meanwhile, fellow Blues midfielder Joe Cole is close to agreeing a new four-year contract at Stamford Bridge.
Cole was a target of his former mentor Harry Redknapp at Tottenham, but the 27-year-old, who missed the last four months of the season with a knee injury, is keen to extend his current deal which runs out in 2010.