Zhirkov may quit Chelsea

Yury Zhirkov will look to leave Chelsea if he fails to force his way into the first team before the end of the season.

The 27-year-old Russia wing-back has only recently returned from three months out with an Achilles injury.

Zhirkov became Carlo Ancelotti’s first major signing when he joined from CSKA Moscow for £18m in the summer of 2009, but he has warned his boss that he may consider a move away from Stamford Bridge.

“My only target at the moment is to get back into the main Chelsea team,” he told The Sun.

“If I’m successful with that, all the other issues will resolve themselves.

“But if I fail to achieve that between now and the summer, I will start thinking of other possibilities.”