Salomon Kalou insists Andre Villas-Boas did not select him for Chelsea because of a contract dispute
Salomon Kalou has claimed that Andre Villas-Boas did not include him in the Chelsea team because he had refused to sign a new contract.
The 26 year-old’s current deal at Chelsea expires at the end of this season and there is no offer on the table now from the club after he rejected one made last year. He is likely to leave along with Didier Drogba, Jose Bosingwa, Florent Malouda and Paulo Ferreira.
Kalou has, however, started four of the six matches under Chelsea’s interim head coach Roberto Di Matteo — and scored the winning goal in the away leg of the Champions League quarter-final against Benfica — and said he wanted to remain at the club where he has been for the past six years and has made 150 appearances.
“I have been told because I didn’t sign the contract I was not allowed to play,” Kalou claimed. “For me I respect every manager, I respect the choice.”
But he added: “I feel maybe sometimes the club never gave me the opportunity to show what I can do. That is a really big frustration for me. Hopefully this is a new beginning and everything will be all right.”
Kalou was also frustrated under former manager Carlo Ancelotti, believing he did not gain sufficient opportunities to play under the Italian either — and that too often he was substituted when he did start matches. However that frustration has grown this season.