These stories are samples pulled from external media sources. They do not represent the views or position of Chelsea Football Club.

Blues target to leave club

Reported Chelsea target David Alaba has announced he will leave Bayern Munich at the end of the season.

Speaking in a press conference, the Austrian announced his 13-year period at the club has come to an end.

Chelsea have reportedly been interested in the versatile defender and want to bring Alaba to Stamford Bridge.

‘I have personally decided to try something new after this season and to leave the club,’ the Austrian said. ‘I am looking for a new challenge.

‘I still have six to seven years to play football and now I wanted to try something new.’

It is claimed the Blues have been keeping tabs on the centre-back for some time and will face competition from Liverpool, Manchester City and Real Madrid to sign the 28-year-old.

Alaba has nine Bundesliga titles to his name and has won the Champions League twice. He was part of the Bayern Munich team that became only the second club in history to win six trophies in a calendar year.

Mancienne on Terry’s influence

Ex-Chelsea centre-back Michael Mancienne has revealed how former club captain John Terry made him feel welcome in the first team and during his England call-up.

Mancienne joined the Academy at 11 and was highly regarded as one of the best young centre-backs in England.

Speaking in an interview with the Athletic, the 33-year-old opened up about how influential Terry was at the beginning of his career.

‘I remember when I was signing my first pro deal and obviously a nobody,’ he said. ‘I walked into Harlington (Chelsea’s former training ground) not expecting anyone to know my name.

‘John Terry just walked up to me and said, "Hi Michael, how are you?" and went on to have a conversation with me. That blew me away. It showed me that he was a nice guy, a true captain.’

The centre-back, who recently signed to Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink’s Burton Albion side, also recalls how the current Aston Villa assistant coach took him under his wing when he captained the Three Lions.

‘He was the England captain when I got my call-up to the senior squad to face Germany,’ he continued. ‘On the plane home, there were a lot of big stars on board.

‘He went around the whole plane and got everyone to sign my shirt for me, he didn’t have to do that, but he went out of his way to do so. It’s something I still treasure. I have it framed in my office. It’s one of my most prized possessions.’

Gerrard on Torres signing for Chelsea

Steven Gerrard has labelled Fernando Torres as one of the best strikers he played alongside in his career.

Speaking on Robbie Folwer’s podcast, the former Liverpool captain also revealed how the Spaniard ‘broke his heart’ by moving to Stamford Bridge.

‘I was gutted when Torres left,’ the Rangers manager said. ‘We were working so hard at that point to try and get as close as we can to close the gap and challenge.

‘My relationship with Torres, I was getting a lot of goals at that time. I was at my peak and felt fantastic.’

However, the Spaniard signed for the Blues and won several major trophies in his time at the club.

He scored an important goal against Barcelona to secure a place in the Champions League final that we won in the 2011/12 season. The following year, the recently retired striker lifted more silverware with the FA Cup and Europa League.

Gerrard also states he tried everything to convince him to stay.

‘People have dreams and different paths and they’re not all local lads,’ he continued. ‘I appreciate and respect all that, but at the same time, it hurts when someone leaves a club.

‘I’ve told him that. I tried to get him to stay, I told his agent the same. ‘They made a decision, and that decision was out of my hands. It hurt a lot.’