Ranieri's rebuilding based upon youth

Claudio Ranieri is continuing to bide his time in a quest to turn Chelsea into Premiership title contenders.

Chelsea's Italian manager was handed the challenge of succeeding where predecessors Ruud Gullit and Gianluca Vialli fell short on his appointment at the start of last season. But 18 months into the job at Stamford Bridge Ranieri is still in re-building mode.

His first task in west London was to dismantle a side made up largely of 30-somethings and inject some youth. Out went the likes of Dennis Wise, Gustavo Poyet and Frank Lebouef and in came younger models Frank Lampard, Sam Dalla Bona and John Terry.

Yet the former Atletico Madrid coach believes his fresh-faced team are still bedding in and he still has further youngsters to discover.

"I like to find new young players. The supporters like that too," Ranieri said ahead of tonight's derby with Fulham. "It is easy to win sometimes with fantastic players like Ruud Gullit, Gianfranco Zola and Gianluca Vialli but it is also good to find young players and to win with them, even if it is more difficult.

"Young players want to improve. They know that one year can change their whole career and I am a coach who likes to play young players like Joe Keenan, who made his debut at Aston Villa and has a good left foot and a good attitude. That is good for the new Chelsea."

Ranieri, who has transformed the fortunes of some of Europe's big clubs, first came to prominence by leading Cagliari to successive promotions and into Italy's Serie A in the early 1990s. He then went to Napoli, where Zola was one of his charges, before hauling Fiorentina, Gabriel Batistuta et al, back into the Italian top-flight after their fall from grace.

Following his four years in Florence, which also delivered the Coppa Italia and Italian Super Cup, Ranieri tried his luck in Spain. There, he helped Valencia along the path to becoming one of Europe's top clubs.

Hector Cuper may have led the team to consecutive Champions' League finals but it was Ranieri, who left for Atletico after winning the Spanish Cup in 1999, that had constructed the skeleton of the side. Now, he is hoping to develop the same kind of unit in the English game.

Ranieri believes with his greater command of the English language and a better understanding from his players he is on the way.

"I am very happy to live in London and to stay at Chelsea as I live very well and have a lot of quality in my life," Ranieri said. "I am happy to train these players and to go to Stamford Bridge where the ground is full with a good atmosphere.

"I want to try and have more English lessons but I am always busy with so many games. It is important to communicate with the players when I am happy with them or when I am angry. But they do understand the Roman language now when I am angry.

"I joke with the players. I tell them that I am throwing a dice to see what happens. Whether it will be Dr Jekyll or Mr Hyde, I don't know. But my players have a good attitude and I like it."

Chelsea's Jesper Gronkjaer raised his fitness levels by playing for more than an hour of the reserves' 1-0 win over Southampton on Monday, when the goalkeeper Mark Bosnich also featured.