Ten Cate blasts Ronaldinho rumors

LONDON, England -- Chelsea coach Henk Ten Cate has dismissed claims that he is trying to bring Brazil star Ronaldinho to the English club.

Ten Cate, the assistant to manager Avram Grant at Stamford Bridge, knows Ronaldinho from his three-year spell as Frank Rijkaard's No. 2 at Barcelona.

And Spanish reports have suggested that Ten Cate is seeking to lure the former world player of the year -- who has struggled to make an impact this season -- away from the Nou Camp.

But Ten Cate, who joined the Blues from Dutch club Ajax in October, called a press conference to refute the allegation.

"A newspaper has written that I have spoken with Ronaldinho to bring him to Chelsea," he said. "This is a big lie. It is false, totally false. I want to call a press conference so that everyone knows this.

"It is a lie -- and what's worse is that the journalist sent me a message saying that they were going to publish the story and I told them it was not true, that it was a lie.

"They only did it to hurt Ronaldinho, and I know what I am talking about because I have experienced the same situation during my time at Barcelona.

"I don't understand this lack of respect for a player who has changed the history of the club. It seems that everybody has forgotten what this guy has achieved.

"Even more seriously, it seems that they have forgotten that against Betis he scored two goals and that was only a week ago.

"In England nobody thinks that Ronnie is finishing, you don't know how they talk about him. Here they understand that a player can have a bad day, that a team can have a bad day."

Ten Cate revealed he has not been in contact with Ronaldinho during the past 12 months.

"We have worked very well together but the truth is that I have not spoken to Ronaldinho for a year," he added.

"He wished me luck at Chelsea through my daughter, who lives in Barcelona, but I have been very focused on my work at Ajax and now at Chelsea.

"The reports also create problems for me at Chelsea because nobody at the club has asked about Ronnie apart from comments over coffee when my companions say things like 'How great is this player, how can he do such spectacular things?'.

"This causes me problems because what is published in Spain comes out in England. If it was true, I would applaud the journalist for finding it out, but it's a lie." E-mail to a friend

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