FOOTBALL CLUB WORLD

According to a report in a British newspaper, Inter are hoping to take Chelsea's Didier Drogba to Milan at the end of the season.

Apparently, Nerazzurri head team boss Jose Mourinho is extremely eager to be reunited with the Ivory Coast striker and will offer Portuguese international winger Ricardo Quaresma in exchange.

Drogba excelled under Mourinho's management of the Blues, scoring 16 goals in 2004/05 and 2005/06, and an incredible 33 in the 2006/07 campaign.

Since the 'Special One' departed Stamford Bridge in September 2007, the Ivory Coast striker has struggled to find the same form.

This season he has played only 20 encounters, scoring just three goals, while Nicolas Anelka has made 32 appearances, finding the back of the net on 17 occasions.

It is claimed that the 30-year-old has also fallen out with current manager Luiz Felipe Scolari, so should Quaresma impress for the remainder of the season a swap deal may not be out of the question.

Talented defender Ricardo Carvalho has issued a defiant message to Liverpool and Manchester United before a decisive week for the London club by declaring that belief remains strong at Stamford Bridge that they can earn the Premier League and Champions League titles.

In fact, Chelsea's 1-0 win over Everton on Thursday closed the gap on Premier League leaders United to two points. It ensures that Sir Alex Ferguson's team will travel to Blackburn for their game in hand today aware that anything but three will allow the Blues to claim a share of top spot by defeating them at Stamford Bridge Stadium on April 26.

Before that, Chelsea play the first leg of their Champions League semi-final against the poweful Liverpool at Anfield on Tuesday, and Portuguese defender Carvalho insists that Avram Grant's squad are fully capable of ending the week with two victories.

As we said, Carvalho expressed: "It was a very important win at Everton, especially after the draw against Wigan. We knew we couldn't make a mistake, that we had to win.

"I'm sure that the title is still possible. Blackburn away is always a difficult game, so hopefully United can drop points. It's going to be difficult and it depends on United, but let's see. We have to win all our encounters, but we will never give up. We hope they can lose points and we can keep winning."

The memory of two defeats in three seasons against the terrible Liverpool at the same stage of the Champions League has galvanised the Chelsea footballers. Carvalho added: "We lost on penalties the last time and in the previous semi-final to a goal that nobody saw cross the line. It was really hard to take" Carvalho admitted.