England Coach Laments Mourinho's Chelsea Exit

Steve McClaren will not be joining any demonstrators at Stamford Bridge but he, too, regrets the departure of Jose Mourinho from Chelsea, while also praising his helpful attitude towards international football. "Even when I was manager of Middlesbrough I thought he was good for the game," said McClaren. "I got on well with him there and as England manager.

"I could not have wanted anyone better to work with. He invited me in, gave access to the players and let me make the decisions on the players. He really did support me all the way through. I don't want to get into the politics of it, but it is sad to lose someone of that calibre and that character. You only have to listen to the Chelsea players to know what kind of manager he was. He has done a lot of good for football and for English players as well."

The Fulham striker Clint Dempsey will face no punishment after his elbow left Chelsea's John Terry with a depressed fracture of the cheekbone in Saturday's goalless draw at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea were hoping the Football Association would take action retrospectively but the referee, Martin Atkinson, was satisfied the incident was dealt with at the time.

Terry underwent surgery on his fractured cheek on Sunday morning, and may miss tomorrow's Champions League match in Valencia. Chelsea are, however, hopeful that Michael Essien and Shaun Wright-Phillips will be fit after both missed Saturday's game with calf and hamstring injuries respectively.

Ronaldinho has ruled out joining Chelsea, having been linked with a move to Stamford Bridge following Mourinho's departure from the club by mutual consent a fortnight ago.

The Barcelona forward, who has been injured for the Spanish club's past three games but is in the squad for tonight's Champions League tie in Stuttgart, has 2½ years left on his current contract and insists he is not thinking about leaving the Camp Nou. "Not Chelsea or Milan," he said. "I want to stay with Barcelona - that is my wish, that is the wish of Ronaldinho."

Ronaldinho's private life has been under scrutiny in the past few weeks and that has led to accusations over his professionalism, but he is determined to win back the fans.

He added: "It [the report] has bothered me because I have been here for five seasons and I have always been in the same position and behaved in a similar manner. It bothered me, but life isn't always wonderful. I am content because my life is centered on my work and I will give my answers on the field. It is there where I will respond."