9pm Chelsea transfer news LIVE: David Alaba LATEST, Rudiger denies betraying Lampard, Tuchel deal clause, Haaland

CHELSEA are on the hunt for summer transfers to strengthen Thomas Tuchel's squad following Frank Lampard's controversial exit.

And Antonio Rudiger – out of favour under the former boss – has strongly denied having anything to do with Lampard's sacking.

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Get all the latest Chelsea transfer news, updates and gossip…

• Joe Brophy2 minutes ago

  FER REAL

  Rio Ferdinand revealed he was ‘very surprised’ to see Thomas Tuchel drop Reece James and play Callum Hudson-Odoi at right wing-back in his first two games in charge of Chelsea.

  Before the 1-0 win over Spurs last night, BT Sport pundit Ferdinand spoke about James: “He’s a top player and I’ll be honest, I was very surprised he didn’t start as soon as Tuchel came in.

  “If he’s watching the videos, this kid is up there with the best right-backs in the league.

  “He’s a young kid got great attitude and his delivery of the ball is phenomenal and as an all-round package as a right-back he’s got a lot.”

• Joe Brophy34 minutes ago

  BREAK APART

  Premier League clubs don't have to let their Portuguese or South American stars represent their national teams in March.

  Clubs are usually forced by FIFA regulations to release players for international duty.

  However, an exemption until the end of April was added in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

  UK rules mean anyone returning from a 'red list' country – which includes Portugal, all of South America and parts of Africa – will need to quarantine for 10 days.

• Joe BrophyToday, 20:42

  KNOCKOUT BLOW

  Premier League clubs were embroiled in a furious row over proposed changes to the Champions League, REPORTS MARTIN LIPTON.

  The latest meeting of the 20 ‘shareholder’ clubs was dominated by a terse and tense debate over the plans, explained for the first time by League chief executive Richard Masters.

  At the height of the bust-up, which saw a scheduled two-hour virtual meeting lasting more than three hours, one club chief even threatened to SUE Uefa.

  Masters outlined the latest proposals, which have emerged after a series of meetings between Uefa bigwigs and representatives of a small number of members of the European Club Association, including Manchester United.

  Uefa, seeking to ward off the genuine threat of a breakaway European Super League, is proposing extending its blue riband competition to 36 clubs, four more than the current 32.

• Joe BrophyToday, 20:13

  FEELING BLUE

  Chelsea ace Reece James has followed in Callum Hudson-Odoi and Mason Mount's footsteps by earning a future stars card on FIFA.

• Joe BrophyToday, 19:43

  GOLDEN TUCH

  Thomas Tuchel is reportedly ready to make a counter-offer to hijack Real Madrid's bid for David Alaba.

  Bayern Munich are set to wave goodbye to the long-serving Austrian defender when his contract expires in the summer.

  Chelsea are one of several teams said to be interested in the 28-year-old, along with Madrid, Liverpool, and Manchester United.

  According to The Guardian, the Blues want to make a last-ditch attempt to gazump the LaLiga giants.

  

• Joe BrophyToday, 19:12

  GREAT SCOT

  Chelsea star Billy Gilmour names Manchester United ace Scott McTominay as the toughest opponent he's faced.

  Speaking on Chelsea’s official Youtube channel, he said: “It was against Manchester United, actually. It was Scott McTominay.

  “I know he’s fellow Scottish and all that but he was so good, quick, strong and technically good. So, I think it was tough playing against him.

  “He played really good, He was stopping everything in midfield and controlling the game.”

• Joe BrophyToday, 18:39

  TUCH N GO

  Matteo Kovacic has discussed the differences between Thomas Tuchel and previous boss Frank Lampard.

  He told the club's website: “I think we’ve improved a lot in the last three games, we’ve got seven points. But we need to go game by game and try to be as up as possible and I think we can do it.

  “I think we have little problems – we didn’t score against Burnley as well. In the last 15 minutes we were 1-0 up and it could be even more.

  “This is a thing we need to improve, to finish games. I think this is one thing we will work a lot on.

  “He [Tuchel] explained to us what he wants. It’s exactly that – to play fast forward, to create chances, to be in the opposition’s half.

  “I think we’ve improved a lot in the last three games but I think we can be even better & be even more confident.

  “In the games coming, we will be even better and we need to even better because we can do it.”

• Joe BrophyToday, 18:02

  THOMAS THE TINK ENGINE

  Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel has reportedly rewritten the club’s plans for the summer transfer window.

  The Blues had been linked with West Ham’s Declan Rice and Brighton’s Ben White under Frank Lampard, but now they have been disregarded as Tuchel focuses instead on the two central defenders.

  According to Goal, they are RB Leipzig’s Dayot Upamecano and Bayern Munich’s Niklas Sule.

  Upamecano, 22, has made a name for himself as one of the hottest prospects in Europe with his performances in the Bundesliga and Champions League.

• Joe BrophyToday, 17:25

  BLADES OF GLORY

  Another way Tuchel could send out his troops at Bramall Lane…

  

• Joe BrophyToday, 16:51

  KANT WAIT

  N'Golo Kante looks set to start his first game since January 3 for Sunday's clash with Sheffield United – but Thiago Silva is unlikely to feature.

  

• Joe BrophyToday, 16:12

  HAZARD WARNING

  Dimitar Berbatov has urged Real Madrid to consider selling Chelsea hero Eden Hazard as he is ‘yet to prove anything’.

  During an interview with BetFair, he said: “Real Madrid should consider selling Hazard.

  “He has had a lot of injuries since he arrived in Spain, and that has prevented him from showing the brilliant football that he played at Chelsea.

  “If it was something occasional then it would be a different matter, but the fact is that the player is injured again and again and again, that is a sign that there is another problem that is affecting him.”

• Josh GrahamToday, 15:35

  MAN MOUNT-AIN

  Mason Mount bagged the man of the match gong for Chelsea's 1-0 win over Spurs last night, and you can see why.

• Josh GrahamToday, 15:08

  FER REAL?

  Rio Ferdinand revealed he was 'very surprised' to see Thomas Tuchel drop Reece James and play Callum Hudson-Odoi at right wing-back in his first two games in charge of Chelsea.

  Before the 1-0 win over Spurs last night, BT Sport pundit Ferdinand spoke about James: "He’s a top player and I’ll be honest, I was very surprised he didn’t start as soon as Tuchel came in.

  “If he’s watching the videos, this kid is up there with the best right-backs in the league.

  "He’s a young kid got great attitude and his delivery of the ball is phenomenal and as an all-round package as a right-back he’s got a lot.”

• Josh GrahamToday, 14:22

  SPURRED ON

  Hear Chelsea midfielder Mateo Kovacic's thoughts after the Blues beat Spurs 1-0 last night.

• Josh GrahamToday, 13:43

  BLUE WARNING

  Thomas Tuchel pledged his heart to Mason Mount – but not a first-team place.

  The new Chelsea boss is the latest coach to be won over by the England star’s personality and performances despite benching him in his first game in charge.

  

  But despite the hug they shared after the 1-0 win at Tottenham last night, Tuchel insisted Mount is still not a guaranteed starter.

  The German said: "There is no doubting he is a team player and the potential he has. We didn’t choose him for the first game because we opted for a slightly different profile on the two No10 positions.

  “But when he came in he showed what a big influence he can have also from the bench, and from here there are no guarantees for anybody. Not even for Mason right now.

  “It’s easy with him because he leaves his heart on the pitch but everybody else does the same thing. It’s a team effort and Mason is the first to agree with this and this is what we need.

  "Is there room to improve? Yes. Is there a lot of room to improve? Yes also and there are no gifts. He has to earn his place at every training session and in every match.

  “He is a super-nice guy and it’s totally clear. He knows this, he is a competitor and it’s why we will keep pushing him like we do the others.”

• Josh GrahamToday, 12:45

  INTER HIM

  Inter Milan could reportedly let FIVE players leave in the summer including Chelsea and Arsenal target Achraf Hakimi.

  Manchester City have also keeping a close eye on the 22-year-old full-back this season.

  Inter Milan desperately need to raise £146million to ensure they can compete next season.

  Transfer fees combined with the coronavirus pandemic have plunged the club into financial crisis.

  According to Gazzetta dello Sport, Inter Milan could get rid of five players in the summer.

  Hakimi has been named alongside Aleksandar Kolarov, Ashley Young, Danilo D’Ambrosio and Matteo Darmian.

  Premier League target Hakimi joined Inter from Real Madrid for £36.3m in the summer of 2020.

• Josh GrahamToday, 12:17

  BEWARE OF THE DROG

  Didier Drogba once wanted to ‘kill’ old Chelsea team-mate Tal Ben Haim after a tackle in training – and Jose Mourinho loved it.

  The Special One is now in charge of Tottenham and suffered a 1-0 defeat to his former club in the Premier League last night.

  

  Steve Sidwell spent the 2007/08 campaign working under the Portuguese boss at Chelsea and watched yesterday’s action as part of the BT Sport panel.

  And he recalled: "There were leaders. Terry, Lampard, Essien, Drogba, Ballack – there were leaders in there.

  “In training, people were smashing the hell out of each other.

  "Tal Ben Haim going through Drogba, Drogba getting up saying, ‘I want to kill him’. Mourinho saying, ‘I need him on Saturday, you can kill him next week’.”

• Josh GrahamToday, 11:39

  TUCH THE MICK

  Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel revealed exactly what he told fellow German Timo Werner during the 1-0 win over Spurs last night.

  Tuchel pulled the former RB Leipzig man aside for some animated instructions just before Jorginho stroked home a first-half penalty.

  And the former PSG boss told Astro SuperSport: "To score the second one and he didn’t listen! [laughs]

  "No, no, we had some tactical advice regarding his position. He was even moving too much, we wanted him to stay a little bit longer on his position.

  "Then we could find him in a more open position in the last line.

  "That was just a quick tactical chat to give him some instructions."

• Josh GrahamToday, 10:55

  DERBY DELIGHT

  Check out highlights of Chelsea's 1-0 win away at Tottenham last night.

• Josh GrahamToday, 10:19

  THE CARING ONE

  Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho has revealed the mixed messages he gave referee Andre Marriner after his side's defeat to Chelsea.

  Spurs suffered their third Premier League defeat in a row on Thursday evening as a first half penalty gave Thomas Tuchel's side a deserved 1-0 win at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

  And while there did not appear to be any contentious decisions during the 90 minutes, Mourinho still went over to talk to Marriner at the end of the game and was happy to divulge what he told him.

  He said: "I told him something that he knows already which is that I consider him one of the best referees in the Premier League and I care for him.

  "He’s a referee that I have a big admiration [for] and that gives me probably a good position to tell him that I didn’t like his performance so it was basically like that.

  "I have a very good relationship with Andre so that gives me a good position to tell him that I didn’t like the performance."

• Josh GrahamToday, 09:36

  PAT ON THE BACK

  Alexandre Pato has asked for a huge house with a private pool and family protection to join Iraq club Al Diwaniya, reports say.

  The Brazilian is currently a free agent having left Sao Paulo in July 2020.

  

  Al Diwaniya president Hussein Al-Ankoshei confirmed the club are in talks with Pato.

  But according to Rudaw TV channel, the 31-year-old has tabled lofty demands while negotiating a contract.

  They say Chelsea flop Pato wants an expensive salary, a big house with a pool equipped and guaranteed safety for himself and wife Rebeca, a TV host.

  Al-Ankoshei eluded to the striker's demands while confirming talks with the player.

  He said: "Negotiations are ongoing, the conditions he has set are difficult to meet and there is still no final agreement, it is not easy."

• Josh GrahamToday, 09:06

  DIM VIEW

  Dimitar Berbatov has urged Real Madrid to consider selling Chelsea hero Eden Hazard as he is ‘yet to prove anything’.

  The injury-prone star, 30, has played just 35 games for the Spanish side since he joined from the Blues in 2019.

  

  Hazard now faces another four to six weeks on the sidelines as he has suffered another muscle injury.

  His latest setback is the TENTH separate problem he has picked up since he arrived at the Bernabeu.

  During an interview with BetFair, Berbatov said: “Real Madrid should consider selling Hazard.

  “He has had a lot of injuries since he arrived in Spain, and that has prevented him from showing the brilliant football that he played at Chelsea.

  “If it was something occasional then it would be a different matter, but the fact is that the player is injured again and again and again, that is a sign that there is another problem that is affecting him.”

• Josh GrahamToday, 08:31

  GOING HAAL IN

  Chelsea target Erling Haaland could join Manchester City instead with Pep Guardiola's side ready to launch a £100million bid this summer before his release clause kicks in.

  The 20-year-old Borussia Dortmund star is the most sought-after striker in Europe following his explosion onto the scene over the past two years.

  However, the Norwegian will be available for just £68m in June 2022 due to a clause in his contract with the German giants.

  Premier League rivals Manchester United are also keen on Haaland who is the son of former City player Alf-Inge Haaland.

  But the Daily Mirror claims City are ‘prepared to blow his suitors out of the water’ with a £100m bid at the end of this season.

  And they are ready to offer the youngster a whopping £400,000-a-week to come to the Etihad.

• Gary StonehouseToday, 06:20

  GOOD MORNING CHELSEA FANS,

  Mason Mount has spoken about Chelsea's new style under Thomas Tuchel, and how the players have taken to their roles.

  The England star was man of the match during the Blues 1-0 win over Spurs.

  He told BT Sport: "I think we had a lot of control in the first half and should have scored more in the game. 

  "We should be more clinical in front of goal and that’s something we need to work on. 

  "It’s the style the manager wants and it’s something we need to keep working at. It’s new. It’s different for some of us players. We’re all learning, but it’s going well so far."

  A delighted Tuchel praised his players for the manner in which they dominated the first half, and then how they dug deep to thwart Tottenham in the second.

  He said: "Every experience we make is a step forward if we are open to learning from it. The whole first half we totally controlled the game high up the pitch, and then in the second half we lost a bit of confidence.

  "Minute by minute, we lost a little bit of ball possession, but we never lost belief, we never lost our structure and intensity to defend.

  "In football, there are many ways to have a good performance. If it’s necessary to suffer, you have to be ready to suffer, and that’s what I’m very happy about."

  And finally on the transfer front, Tuchel says it was a no-brainer to snub Chelsea loan exits for Billy Gilmour and Timo Anjorin.

  He said: “That was maybe the most comfortable transfer period in my life as a professional coach.

  “I was in only a few days, I was happy with every guy that was out there on the pitch, there were no big injuries.

  “So there was no need for one minute to think about bringing players in.

  “It was the opposite, we decided to keep Tino Anjorin and Billy Gilmour with the group because I like a lot what I see from the two guys.

  “Billy is very, very close in terms of quality and work ethic and personality.

  “So we decided very quickly. It was not even a decision, it was simply clear that we go with this group going forward.”

• Joe Brophy4th Feb 2021, 22:40

  A-MACE-ING

  Mason Mount has spoken about Chelsea's new style under Thomas Tuchel, and how the players have taken to their roles.

  The England star was man of the match during the Blues 1-0 win over Spurs.

  He told BT Sport: "I think we had a lot of control in the first half and should have scored more in the game.

  "We should be more clinical in front of goal and that’s something we need to work on.

  "It’s the style the manager wants and it’s something we need to keep working at. It’s new. It’s different for some of us players. We’re all learning, but it’s going well so far."

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