Tuesday, August 8 2006 14:57 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

London: Jose Mourinho has never been one to take the understated approach when he can make a brash and bold impact instead. So it was entirely in character that the self-styled special one should underline his determination not to rest on the laurels of leading Chelsea to back-to-back Premiership titles by signing two of world footballs biggest stars this summer.

Spending a British record 30 million pounds (45 million euros) to prise Ukraine striker Andriy Shevchenko from AC Milan sent out an unmistakable message to potential challengers at home and in Europe.

If Barcelona, Milan, Liverpool and the rest of the continent's elite clubs were searching for signs that the west London arrivistes had become complacent after two years of unprecedented success, the capture of the continents most feared goal-poacher quickly erased those hopes.

The arrival of Bayern Munich midfielder Michael Ballack added further proof of Mourinhos desire to give his team an injection of thoroughbred pedigree.

Those deals, along with the potential signing of Arsenal's England left-back Ashley Cole, represented a significant shift in the Portuguese coaches transfer policy.

Where he had previously targeted players who had yet to fulfill their full potential, now, with European success in mind, only the finished article is good enough.

But in raising the quality of his squad Mourinho has also increased the expectations of fans, pundits and, perhaps most significantly the clubs hierarchy, that this will be the season when Chelsea win the Champions League for the first time.



Last seasons second round exit against eventual winners Barcelona followed two consecutive semi-finals defeats, and those losses have stoked a desire at Stamford Bridge to finally land Europes leading club prize.



Success in the Champions League would also boost the Chelsea marketing men's bid to establish a global brand to rival those of Real Madrid and Manchester United.

While there's little doubt Mourinho has complete confidence in his ability to live up to those weighty expectations, he will be scrutinized like never before this season.

Even players of Shevchenko and Ballack's calibre dont come with a guarantee of success and Mourinho faces some intriguing decisions as he tries to integrate his two high-profile buys into his rigid team ethic.

Shevchenko is capable of scoring in any company but Mourinhos safety-first style of play will present a stark contrast to Milan's more attack-minded philosophy and the coach may have to tinker with his tactics to bring out the best from the Ukrainian.

He has to decide if Shevchenko will be able to thrive as a lone striker and, if not, change the shape of the team to pair him with Ivory Coast forward Didier Drogba.

Ballack poses an even greater dilemma for Mourinho, who will try to accommodate the Germany captain alongside fellow attacking midfielder Frank Lampard.

Mourinho insists they can play together without compromising his sides defensive solidity, but to do so would make it difficult to find places for both the influential Claude Makelele and dynamic Ghanaian Michael Essien.

With Nigeria's John Obi Mikel having finally completed his protracted transfer from Lyn Oslo via Manchester United, the battle for a place in Mourinho's midfield engine room will be intense.

That fierce competition for places proved too stiff for Damien Duff and Eidur Gudjohnsen, who asked to leave, joining Newcastle and Barcelona respectively, while Hernan Crespo signed for Inter Milan after failing to settle in London.

But Mourinho, who is likely to be without Joe Cole for several months after the midfielders pre-season knee injury, has been less accommodating to William Gallas.

The versatile French defender refused to join up with the rest of the team for their training camp in America, claiming he needed more time to recover from helping his country reach the World Cup final.

Mourinho accused Gallas, who is frustrated by his managers reluctance to play him in his preferred central defensive position, of lacking respect for his team-mates and a move across the capital to Arsenal remains a possible solution to the feud.

With or without Gallas, Mourinho has assembled a squad capable of maintaining their vice-like grip on the Premiership and quite possibly fulfilling that European dream as well.