Drogba must fight for place

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The Ivory Coast striker is set to make his first start since recovering from a knee injury against Burnley in the fourth round of the Carling Cup tomorrow.

However, he is no longer an automatic choice for the major competitions as Anelka has thrived in his absence and is the top scorer in the Premier League with 10 goals.

Assistant coach Ray Wilkins said: "Didier faces a fight to get back in the side and that's what being at a big club is all about. Nicolas has different attributes to Drogba and his pace can get him behind defenders in a flash. There's a very healthy rivalry between the two guys over who will score the most this season.

"I'm not surprised at how well Nicolas has played because if you look at him over the years he's always had immense quality. At the moment Luiz Filipe Scolari is getting the best out of him.

Nicolas has worked extremely hard to get himself in this situation and we must give him a lot of respect for what he has done."

Wilkins confirmed Chelsea will make seven changes to the team that beat Blackburn on Sunday despite the squad expressing their wish not to be rested.

The coach, meanwhile, wants to put an end to his feud with Paul Ince after upsetting the Blackburn manager by talking about their physical style of play before the match at Ewood Park.

He said: "If I speak about Paul and what happened on Sunday then I am paying Burnley a disservice. I would sooner talk about Burnley and issues surrounding Chelsea."