Grant tells fringe players not to sulk

After a cautious first five weeks at the helm, Grant is slowly starting to impose his personality inside the club. He did little to deny suggestions that Shaun Wright-Phillips had thrown a tantrum after being left out of the squad in midweek.

Instead the Israeli told today's opponents Manchester City that the England winger was not for sale and held up Andriy Shevchenko as a shining example of how a player should behave when he is not in the team.

Grant said: "We are talking about professional players and they need to handle everything. We are not babysitters. Generally we treat our players very positively and professionally and we expect the same from them. First and foremost we have to think about what's good for Chelsea.

"We have 25 players in the squad and most of them are international players. We are allowed to play only 11. I have asked to play more but they don't allow me, I don't know why. Every week international players are not in the squad.

"I want players who will be happy at the end of the season, when they look back and say I have made my contribution to the team."

Shevchenko, 31, remains firmly on the fringes, even under Grant, who was originally supposed to join the club to maximise the talents of the £31million striker.

The Ukrainian, who has started only four games and has scored once this season, is now working with former British Olympic sprinter Darren Campbell in a bid to recapture some of his pace.

Grant said: "Shevchenko is a great player with a great attitude. He has not been at his best since the beginning of the season and this is the reason why he doesn't play.

"There are many reasons for this and we need to help him as we help all our players. But players need to help themselves. Sometimes you never know if it's a physical or mental reason why the players don't look good. Sometimes it's both. It does not say anything about the future. When we need him I'm sure he'll be there. When some players are not at their best it doesn't mean they are finished. Some players have the right attitude, they fight to come back quicker. That is the way with Andriy."

Grant advocates specialist coaching, and has already been joined by new scout Michael Emenalo and assistant Henk Ten Cate, who has pledged his commitment to Chelsea's quest for entertainment.

Former Barcelona No 2 Ten Cate said: "To the crowd we are like performers. If you go to the cinema, you want to see good acting. So if you go to a football game, you want to see good attractive football that's good to watch. The biggest compliment we got at Barcelona for winning the Champions League was not holding the cup but that almost everyone knew and spoke of the football Barcelona played."

Michael Ballack, who has not played since an ankle operation in the summer, completed a rigorous session yesterday but is not close to a comeback, according to his manager.

"He is better than he was," said Grant. "I hope in one or two months he will be ready for us. Michael Ballack is very important. He is a matchwinner and I expect him back soon."