SOCCER/Chelsea v Manchester Utd:CARLO ANCELOTTI will only dip into the transfer market during the midwinter window in January if injuries to key players leave his squad depleted. The Italian was speaking after the Court of Arbitration for Sport froze Fifa's 12-month suspension on Chelsea registering new personnel over the Gael Kakuta affair pending the hearing of the Londoners' appeal.
Chelsea expect the case to be heard in Lausanne early next year, most likely at the beginning of February, having opted against asking the CAS to fast-track their appeal.
They will now be able to purchase players in January in the knowledge that, should the CAS uphold Fifa’s ban, this would be their final opportunity to bring in fresh blood until the summer of 2011, though Ancelotti followed the lead of the club’s chief executive, Ron Gourlay, in suggesting the club will not be spending lavishly in mid-season.
Instead, Chelsea consider the CAS’s suspension as having provided them with a safety net should injuries restrict Ancelotti’s options over the coming months.
“It’s a decision that gives us the possibility to buy new players if it’s necessary, but at this moment it’s not necessary,” said the Italian. “[Our decision to seek the freezing of the suspension] makes sense because we want to have the opportunity to buy if needed. I know the best players are not available in the middle of the season. But, for us, it is not a problem at the moment. Our aim now is to maintain the players we have in good condition because we have a big squad with a lot of good players.
“Now we have the possibility to buy thanks to this decision, and we have some time to look for new players. But we don’t want to take a decision in this moment. For now I’m very happy with the squad and it’s not necessary at the moment to take new players. I know we will lose four in January [to the African Cup of Nations], but if we maintain the players’ fitness we can do a good period even without the African players.”
Asked whether not strengthening the squad represented a risk when the next opportunity to sign new players might not be until the summer of 2011, Ancelotti said: “No. We have to wait. I am happy with the squad. I have experience of working with older players, and not having any problems. I’ve trained some players at Milan until they were into their 40s, so these players have a lot of time yet.”
Kakuta, the French teenager who was banned from playing for four months by Fifa after Chelsea were found guilty of inducing him to break his contract with Lens back in 2007, will now play for the club’s reserve team against Fulham at Griffin Park on Monday night.
Meanwhile, Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson yesterday played down talk of a rift between goalkeepers Tomasz Kuszczak and Edwin van der Sar ahead of tomorrow’s top-of-the-table clash with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
Kuszczak seemed to attack the veteran Dutchman for not offering him enough support during his time at Old Trafford, claiming he had asked Van der Sar for advice but none had been forthcoming.
As the Poland international made his comments on United’s in-house television station, MUTV, it seemed a strange grievance to make. “It is just not true,” said Ferguson. “Tomasz was cracking a joke. He was laughing when he said it. There is no problem between him and Edwin – maybe it is just that Polish humour doesn’t translate to British humour.”
Either way it’s unlikely to sway his selection for tomorrow’s trip to Chelsea though. Despite his performance against CSKA Moscow on Tuesday being heavily criticised, Van der Sar is virtually certain to retain his goalkeeping berth, with either Kuszczak or Ben Foster on the bench.
Ancelotti has tried to play down the importance of his side’s clash with United. “Psychologically, it will not mean more,” he said.
United will be without calf injury victim Rio Ferdinand but Ancelotti does not think Ferguson’s side will be vulnerable as a result. “I think Manchester United have a very good team. Like us, they are doing very well because they have qualified in the Champions League and have done very well in the Premier League.
“Sometimes against Ferguson I’ve won. Sometimes he’s won. But it’s not a match between Ancelotti and Ferguson. It’s Chelsea v Manchester United.
“I have a very good relationship with Ferguson. I think that he’s one of the best coaches in the world. He has won a lot of trophies and I have respect for him.”
