Essien to sign new deal

Michael Essien is expected to sign a new bumper contract with his club Chelsea, this week, which will see him double his salary.

The Ghanaian midfielder, 24, should sign a new five-year deal, doubling his wages to $177,000 a week.

Essien will still earn $60,000 less than the club's top earners, Andriy Shevchenko and Michael Ballack.

England skipper, John Terry, is also close to signing a new five-year deal which should put him on the same salary ($237,000-a-week) as the club?s top earners. Negotiations with Terry have been going on for four months and the two parties are close to agreeing.

Chelsea board questions Mourinho handling of Essien

tribalfooball -- Jose Mourinho will demand full control of transfers at Chelsea at the end of this season.

Mourinho is fed-up with the growing influence of Chelsea technical chief Frank Arnesen and the Guardian says the Portuguese, who retains the support of the chief executive, Peter Kenyon, will seek in the close season to have complete control of transfer matters restored to him on pain of his resignation.

Meanwhile, with support inside club waning, it has not gone unnoticed that, while Mourinho was wailing for a new centre-half, he overlooked Michael Essien's ability in the position, one he often occupied at his former club, Lyon.

Indeed Mourinho admitted last week that he had been slow to react to the dangers of deep defending without the injured John Terry.

"The team now is defending up because we have no power to defend back," said Mourinho. "We are defending up the field with a fast defensive line. That is the best way to do it because the defensive players are fast."