Sealed records, made exclusively available to Chelsea Offside, indicate Kalou won via side choke in the third round.

Kalou’s technical skills have obviously improved since this
exhibition bout with teammate Jose Bosingwa last winter.

“Things got a little heated but we are human and these things can happen to us,” West Bromwich Albion defender Meite said. “But in the end we understood that we have to preserve the spirit in the squad and so it’s all forgotten now.”

Kalou — who, despite still holding child-like weight (what do you think? 120lb or so)  looks to have added some sizzle (aka definition) to his frame –  admitted being in the wrong. S***, I’m just glad to see him show some spark.

“Meite is a big brother, I have apologised and he has accepted it,” Kalou said. “It’s a pity that it was between Abdoulaye and myself. We were punished and I have accepted that and that’s how we move on. You recognise your mistake and you learn – we’ve talked and its over.”

Talks between UFC head Dana White and Kalou’s representatives have yet to take place.

Applaud these men.

This is obviously a non Chelsea-related post, but I don’t care. On this day, the Ireland national team deserves recognition across the board — across the world. Those boys in green are no doubt worthy of a spot at the 2010 World Cup finals in South Africa. They won’t be there; a Thierry Henry hand — or two — made sure of that. But they should be.

So, I ask you to join me in raising a pint (a Guinness if you’ve got one) for the Irish. They deserve it.

That move kind of backfired, eh? Sawyer had numerous discipline issues while at Southend, including being banned for a match after missing a team meeting.

Good luck to you son.

Wow. Of course, it was rejected by David Moyes & Co. who value Rodwell at £20m. Hmm, a hefty sum that. Is this young starlet worth it?

Worth a cool 20 million?

Of course not. But he’s young and English. Thus ridiculous fees are inherent.

What I do know is that this kid can play. Primarily a defensive midfielder, Rodwell — who has also attracted the interest of Manchester United and Arsenal — has already made 18 appearances this season for the Toffees. This at just 18 years old. His long-term future appears to be in the central of defense, where most reckon he’ll be the next Rio Ferdinand — minus the dip in form, naturally.

Do I like this move? I do, I really do. I’m not sure about £20m, but 15 would be good business. What do you guys think?

You guys know the deal by now. Former Chelsea keeper Carlo Cudicini suffered career-threatening injuries in a motorcycle crash last week. Cudicini, now at Tottenham, had successful surgery on Friday and is expected to make a “good recovery.” Excellent news.

We at Chelsea Offside wish you the best, Carlo.

Following this weekend’s international break, the list of those on the treatment table has grown exponentially — and not simply from lining up for their respective countries.

Frank Lampard pulled out of England’s friendly against Brazil in Qatar before it even began. In fact, he was done immediately after de-boarding the flight. Yes, Super Frank could be out anywhere from three weeks to eight (according to reports) with a thigh tear apparently picked up because of poor seating on the airplane. Seriously? Maybe we should blame the FA for this farce.

Then there was England’s Brave John Terry, who also failed to make it safely into England’s squad for the Brazil friendly. A swollen ankle in training prevented his participation. Who knows how serious this is, and how long Chelsea may be without its captain.

And, now, I’m reading that Didier Drogba could be sidelined for up to three weeks with a broken rib? Maybe I’m late on this, but come on. The Sun suggests a scan by Drogba’s home nation, Ivory Coast, revealed the damage; that would appear legit considering the striker was held out of the country’s World Cup qualifier against Guinea on the weekend.

All this on top of the loss of fullbacks Ashley Cole and Jose Bosingwa. Bos will miss three months; Cole’s layoff is unknown, though we know — thankfully — that his injury does not require surgery.

Where does this leave us? Well…

Looking ahead two weeks to a pivotal match against second-place Arsenal, we could potentially be without Drogba, Lampard, Terry as well as Cashley and Bos.

Not good. Not good at all.

Off a defender, off a post, in the net. Mr. Anelka took care of business away for France, making their trip to South Africa look pretty likely. As Jack posted earlier this week, Nico likes being the supporting striker, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t like to let it rip on occasion.

Also in action today, Deco, Ricardo Carvalho, and Paulo Ferreira all played as Portugal won 1-0 against Bosnia, as Hilario, who won his first callup for Portugal, didn’t make the bench. Maybe Wednesday, Henrique!

And oh yeah, I’m the new guy. Jon. How ya doin? I also write the DC United Offside page, so if you’re a Chelsea fan who wants to find an MLS team to follow…I think you can see where I’m going with this. I’ll be helping Jack make this one of the best Chelsea blogs on the intertubes, and I welcome your comments and suggestions for the blog.

Sexy.

An FA spokesman: “We can confirm that Frank Lampard picked up an injury to his left thigh whilst training today and will be returning home this evening. There will be no further call-ups to the squad.”

According to the Guardian, the FA medical staff’s initial assessment suggested Lampard could be out of action for a few weeks. Super Frank and his camp are suspecting it may be more serious. This is, after all, the same problem that ruled the midfielder out for more than a month twice during the 2007 season.

Damn you, awkwardly scheduled international friendly.

Bosingwa ruled out for three months

S***. At least we have an in-form Branislav Ivanovic to continue in his absent. Who knows, Bane may be first-choice, anyway.

The 27-year-old fullback has been out since mid-October with the problem.

No knives for Cashley
“… Ashley Cole is suffering from an aggravation of a depressed fracture of the tibia, originally picked up against Atletico Madrid at Stamford Bridge. The injury will not require surgery.”

Excellent news. A timetable for Cole’s absence was not released, but you’ve got to expect him to miss at least a couple of weeks with the ailment.

Cech to answer queries live online Friday
The Chelsea goalkeeper is scheduled to answer fan questions, most of which were collected over the past two weeks on the club’s Facebook Fan Page, on Friday from 1 p.m. The interview will be streamed live via chelseafc.com on the live press conferences page.

I’ve got a question in quene, so hopefully the helmet man will respond. Be sure to check it out.

Randoms

• Reserver keeper Hilario has been called up to the Portugese national team for the first time. He’ll be in the squat for this weekend’s World Cup qualification playoff first leg against Bosnia-Herzegovina. Congratulations, Hilarious.
• Michael Essien is launching his own charity organization, The Michael Essien Foundation, this week. Its aim is to provide residents of Awutu Breku, Essien’s hometown, with sufficient supplies/money to improve their standard of life. Bravo, Michael.
• Didier Drogba will be hosting a charity dinner on Nov. 21 in aid of his Didier Drogba Foundation. The dinner will raise money towards building a hospital in his home city of Abidjan, Ivory Coast, and will be held at the Dorchester Hotel after the home game against Wolves on that Saturday.