Chelsea plan to bring in Rijkaard after landing Ten Cate

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Ajax have given Ten Cate permission to talk to Chelsea and he should be in place as assistant to Avram Grant before the end of the international break.

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Double dutch: Rijkaard may join Ten Cate in the summer

But according to sources in Holland, Ten Cate is the first part of a grand Chelsea plan that will conclude with Rijkaard moving from Barcelona to Stamford Bridge next summer.

Huntelaar, the highly-rated Holland star who turned down the chance to move to Manchester United last summer for £14million after deciding he wanted to spend one more season in Holland, could become a Chelsea player in the January transfer window.

The 24-year-old scored 21 goals in 32 league games for Ajax last season and his arrival at Chelsea is sure to lead to Andriy Shevchenko's departure, with Inter Milan the most likely destination for the troubled Ukrainian.

Well-placed sources in Holland believe Rijkaard will then follow. 'It is an open secret in Holland that this is Rijkaard's last season at Barcelona,' said one insider. 'He will move to Chelsea as coach, with Henk Ten Cate as his assistant and Grant back as director of football.'

Rijkaard and Ten Cate worked successfully together at the Nou Camp and earned the admiration of Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich. Ten Cate has revealed to friends how he and Rijkaard once met Abramovich and were complimented for their style of football.

While Chelsea continue to insist Grant is a longterm appointment, it now seems highly unlikely that he will remain manager after this season.

As Jurgen Klinsmann revealed in an interview, Grant was a member of a Chelsea party that approached him last season to succeed Jose Mourinho as manager.

Grant was still at Portsmouth at the time, but was presented to the ex-Germany coach as the club's soon-to-be-appointed director of football and that still seems to be the role Abramovich has in mind for him.

Rijkaard's arrival could even make it easier to lure Ronaldinho to Stamford Bridge. Reports in Spain claim the Brazil superstar is dating Rijkaard's daughter Lindsay.