I’ll stay Blue and true, declares Ancelotti

CARLO ANCELOTTI yesterday insisted he had no intention of quitting Chelsea at the end of the season.

The future of under-pressure Blues boss Ancelotti has been the subject of fevered speculation, with reports linking him with a return to Italy with Roma.

But the 51-year-old declared yesterday he would honour his contract, which expires in 2012, and hinted he may stay even longer.

“I’ll stay in London at least until 2012,” he said.

Ancelotti also rubbished suggestions of a dressing-room rift at Stamford Bridge in the wake of the club’s worst run in the Barclays Premier League for more than a decade.

“There aren’t problems in the dressing room, the relationships are good,” he said.

“Everything depends on the results that haven’t arrived because of too many misfortunes.”

Ancelotti highlighted injury and suspension to the likes of Frank Lampard, John Terry, Didier Drogba, Michael Essien and Alex as being the key factor behind his first really tough spell since his appointment a year and a half ago.

Last month also saw assistant Ray Wilkins sacked, having been Ancelotti’s right-hand man during last season’s historic double success.

The Premier League champions’ form has dipped alarmingly since and they have not won for five matches, dropping from first to fourth.

They missed a stoppage-time penalty to beat Tottenham on Sunday but Ancelotti feels their performance bodes well for this weekend’s crunch clash with Manchester United.

“In that game I realised that we are alive and we will start winning soon,” he said.

Ancelotti will be boosted by the return of star midfielder Lampard, set to start on Sunday after coming through a practice match unscathed.

England international Lampard completed what was a 60-minute game at the club’s Cobham training ground, which involved players from the reserve and youth teams.

The 32-year-old made a surprise comeback against Tottenham after three-and-a-half months on the sidelines, playing the final 12 minutes.

Ancelotti revealed after the game that Lampard would start against league leaders United this weekend providing he suffered no reaction.

The absence of Chelsea’s vice-captain has also forced Ancelotti to throw summer signing Ramires in at the deep end. The Brazil midfielder struggled to make an impact since becoming the champions’ only big-money buy during the last transfer window.

After an outstanding performance against Arsenal in October, the 23-year-old looked to have found his feet but he was unable to rediscover that form until impressing at Spurs. That has given him the confidence to declare he is beginning to demonstrate why Chelsea paid Benfica a reported £18.3million for his services.

Ramires, who had never left his native Brazil until moving to Portugal last year, claims the language barrier has been a problem but revealed his determination to learn English as quickly as possible. “I am happy, so things are going well and I look forward to fulfilling my contract with Chelsea.”