Chelsea's Joe Cole: I Won't Leave On A Free

"I want nothing more to stay at Chelsea," he told The Daily Mail. "I love it here. It's not a problem. I don't want drama in the papers, either.

"You won't hear my agent running around saying I'm going to this club or that club. I want to be at Chelsea and they know that."

Cole suffered a serious knee injury in January and has not yet regained a starting place in Carlo Anchelotti's team.

"I've still got a lot to prove," he said. "If I want to play the No 10 position for Chelsea, I've got to get back better than I was before.

"I feel like Chelsea are looking at me and saying, 'We want you to prove you can be that player for us'. I've got to prove myself again but that's all right - I've had to prove myself all my life."

"I'll put my heart and soul into getting into that team," he said. "You're always disappointed [to be left out], but it just puts more fire in my belly. Don't bet against me when I'm in that frame of mind.

"All I need to do is to get back to my best football and I think I'll merit a place in the starting XI. I have faith in myself and my desire to get to the level I was at before. That's the way I'm looking at it. I'm going to try everything in my power."

James Daly, Goal.com