London: After the arrival of Michael Ballack and Andriy Shevchenko, Chelsea is reported to be chasing Brazilian star Roberto Carlos.
A day after Shevchenko signed a four-year deal at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho was quoted as saying he would like to sign Carlos from Real Madrid.
"Roberto Carlos is 33 but for me he continues to be the best player in his position and I wish it would be possible," Mourinho said.
"I am not one of those who looks at a player's birth certificate. I am one of those who thinks what matters is what he does during the 90 minutes he is on the pitch, not if he is 20, 30 or 40.
"We will have to be patient and wait to see what happens."
Meanwhile, Chelsea fans will have to wait until after the World Cup to get a first sight of new signing Shevchenko, who scored 173 goals in seven seasons at Milan after helping Dynamo Kiev win five domestic league titles in Ukraine.
Shevchenko came to Stamford Bridge on Wednesday to have a medical checkup and sign a contract, but returned immediately to team up with his Ukraine teammates for the former Soviet republic's World Cup debut. Chelsea said he will be introduced at a club news conference sometime after the World Cup.
"There are so many international players (at Chelsea)," Shevchenko told the club's TV channel through an interpreter. "The flags of the team are John Terry and Frank Lampard. I can also remember some of the (Chelsea) stars who used to play in Italy like Gianfranco Zola.
"I hope I can adapt quickly (to the Premier League) but it depends on the World Cup and preseason. What is for sure is that I will use all my strength to do what is best from the beginning for this club and the fans."
Mourinho moved to Chelsea two years ago after guiding FC Porto to a Champions League triumph. Despite winning back-to-back Premier League titles with the Blues, he has so far been unable to bring European soccer's biggest club title to Stamford Bridge.
Shevchenko has experienced both winning and losing in Champions League finals with AC Milan.
He scored the final spot kick as Milan beat Juventus on penalties in the 2003 final at Old Trafford. When his penalty was saved, Milan lost a shootout to Liverpool after a thrilling 3-3 draw in Istanbul in 2005.
"I felt very happy when we won the Champions League and very unhappy when we lost," he said. "But it's the most important challenge and it gives you big emotions."
Mourinho said that Shevchenko's arrival, following that of Germany captain Ballack two weeks ago, showed that Chelsea had become one of the biggest attractions in the game.
"Today is a day when the dream became reality," Mourinho said after Shevchenko signed his contract. Andriy has always been my first choice for Chelsea since I arrived. Before it was not possible, now it is for real. He has great qualities, ambition, discipline, tactical awareness and of course he is a great goalscorer."
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