Chelsea do not need Ferdinand, says Clarke

Chelsea assistant manager Steve Clarke has stepped into the Rio Ferdinand row by saying the Premier League leaders do not need another central defender.

"We have four of the best centre-halves in the world in John Terry, Ricardo Carvalho, William Gallas and Robert Huth. We don't need a central defender, but maybe there is another agenda there," Clarke said yesterday.

Ferdinand has been linked with a transfer from Manchester United to Chelsea after being seen, with his agent, meeting Chelsea chief executive Peter Kenyon in London.

Kenyon has said the meeting was a coincidence and Chelsea say they have no interest in signing the England international, who became the world's most expensive defender when he joined United from Leeds for £30 million in 2002.

However, as a result of the meeting, Ferdinand's contract negotiations with United have now become public news. Local media suggest the England defender is demanding £120,000 a week to stay and United manager Alex Ferguson has urged Ferdinand to sign the deal being offered.