Gallas

[eamo]

Chelsea are losing the best defender in the world for me.... couldn't be happier


Defender William Gallas has told Chelsea he wants to leave the club.
The Frenchman, 28, moved to Stamford Bridge from Marseille for £6m in 2001 and has proved a stalwart in their back-to-back Premiership titles.

Now Gallas, who claims AC Milan want to sign him, has said: "My decision has been taken and is definitive: I want to leave Chelsea.

"I want another challenge. I've been with Chelsea for five years. I want to experience another league."

Speaking to L'Equipe, Gallas suggested the San Siro was his most likely destination.

"The directors of Milan are interested in me, and I am interested in the idea of going to play over there.

Gallas said his request was "not a question of money" amid reports that he has been unhappy playing at full-back, away from his preferred role at centre-back.

Earlier this month Gallas had given a pointer to the way he was feeling.

"I have been here five years and maybe that's enough. I am a man who wants to win everything and I want to do that in different countries," Gallas said.

The Frenchman, who has made more than 200 appearances for Chelsea in his five years at the club, has one year left on his Stamford Bridge contract.

[cully]

really hated chelsea's stance on this one. he's been a good servant for them and they should respect his wishes to leave.

[briantinnion]

Delighted the cracks are starting to show in Chelsea. Can't blame Gallas for wanting to leave, the guy is a great centre back and he's spending most of his time out of position. I only wish Damien Duff would take a leaf out of his book, needs to get out of Chelsea fast.

[cully]

bringing this topic back to the fore because of the recent musings that drogba now wants to leave too. Mourinho has come out to say that he's not going anywhere and if he's unhappy with that tough, he'll have to deal with it. Also, the rumours are that swp will be allowed go on loan for the season as opposed to selling him for a loss.

in not allowing swp and drogba be sold, mourinho is trying to deflect from the fact that he paid massively over the odds for these players who simply aren't and will never be good enough to command the sums paid out. whatever about drogba, i have no sympathy for swp who got greedy and accepted the cash from chelsea in probably good knowledge that he'd be playing a bit part behind joe cole, duff and robben. he should be let rot in the chelsea reserves.

once again, this highlights what i believe all along that mourinho is not the manager some believe him to be.

[bandage]

Think that's slightly harsh on SWeeP - I don't necessarily think it was greed. I think he genuinely backed himself to force his way into their side if not for all their games then for a decent chunk of them anyway especially with the squad rotation system most teams operate. Remember Chelsea played about 50-55 competitive games this season so even starting 20-25 of these and making a good few substitute appearances would have represented a decent first season for him there. I'm not sure why it worked out so disappointingly for him - possibly because he is too much of a free spirit and doesn't conform to Mourinho's rigid, dogged 'style'. In any case it was his step-dad that turned his head in the first place and convinced him he needed to join one of the top 4 to cement his World Cup place. Oh dear.

[cully]

i agree that he had to leave, but the other three of the top four (liv, ars and manu) would all have gone in for him and whilst chelsea would have tried to price them out of it i think city would have let him go to a club for less if it was his preferred option. stupidity or greed, you decide but i've made my mind up.

[therock67]

There can be little doubt that the money had an influence on SWP's decision to leave. Did it play a big role? Unlikely, as he would have been offered generous terms at City. Did it play a bigger role than, say, Damien Duff's transfer? Unlikely. Is there one rule for Damien Duff and another for SWP? Seems so.

The list of guys who've made these moves and it hasn't worked out for them is huge. Some I feel are unlucky because they had the talent and were probably overachieving at their old club (SWP). Some are unlucky because they fall out of favour after a while (Duff). Some were too big for their boots in the first place (Liam Miller). Some guys make a mistake but move on and don't dwell on the huge contract (Robbie Keane). My respect for SWP and Duff will diminish if they stay and are still short on games. It's all very well knuckling down and fighting for your place - which is admirable - but there comes a time when you need the courage to move on and prove yourself somewhere. That time might not be this summer but it should be soon if circumstances don't change.