Blues urged to make Zola offer he can't refuse
Claudio Ranieri and his players are urging chairman Ken Bates to make Chelsea’s revered Godfather, Gianfranco Zola, an offer he can’t refuse to sign a new deal at Stamford Bridge and play in the Champions League next season.
But the exquisitely gifted little Sardinian, 37 in July, still won’t confirm his commitment to the Blues even after their return to Europe’s top echelon was confirmed by yesterday’s triumph in the fourth-place Premiership shoot-out against strangely-listless Liverpool.
Seven years in South-west London have made Zola the Premiership’s favourite foreign import but he is hedging his bets over the future because he wants his three children – aged 12, 10 and three months – to have at least something of an Italian upbringing, even though he admits he still loves life in the English capital.
He also insists: “I would play for this club even in the First Division. It is wonderful that we are back in the Champions League because, although I’ve played in that competition before, it has always been a big ambition to do it again.
“But I don’t want to think about a new contract yet. For now I just want to enjoy the day of a great victory over Liverpool, this result was never going to decide whether I stayed here or not.”
Boss Ranieri, Zola’s fellow-Italian who played the top-scoring 16-goal striker only as a substitute for the crucial final game of the campaign, said: “I very much hope he will stay. He is a master footballer – as you could see in the last 20 minutes against Liverpool.
“But I am not in charge of the financial dealings at Chelsea. My job is to get the players to achieve the best they can and it is a delight for me that we are back in the Champions League.”
Carlo Cudicini, another Italian star who collected ‘The Golden Gloves’ after being voted Best Premiership Goalkeeper, insisted: “Franco is playing even better than ever and I think the club has to find the right deal to keep him here.”
Skipper Marcel Desailly, record-breaking France captain, now with 104 caps, added: “We all want him here again next season and I think he will be.”
And former England full-back Graeme Le Saux said: “Now Chelsea must fulfil our wishes and get Franco signed up again.”
Zola was let loose to imprint his magic on Liverpool’s defence only 18 minutes from the end – long after Desailly, equalising with a smart header from a cross by Jesper Gronkjaer, who delivered a brilliant 27th-minute winner, had wiped out Sami Hyypia’s early breakthrough for Liverpool.
But his appearance raised probably the biggest cheer of the day from a best-of-season 41,911 crowd who made it abundantly clear they will be shattered if Zola goes now.
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