Chelsea part company with Wilkins
Chelsea have announced they are not renewing the contract of assistant manager Ray Wilkins and that he is to leave the club with immediate effect.
Wilkins, 54, rejoined Chelsea's coaching staff for a second time in 2008 to work under Luiz Felipe Scolari.
He stayed when Guus Hiddink came in and remained when Carlo Ancelotti was named manger ahead of the 2009-2010 season.
Chelsea's chief executive Ron Gourlay said: "I would like to thank Ray for everything he has done for Chelsea."
He added: "We all wish him well for the future."
Wilkins - who enjoyed a distinguished playing career with spells at Chelsea, Manchester United, AC Milan and QPR amongst others - was on the bench for the clubs's 1-0 win over Fulham on Wednesday.
No reason has been given for the decision not to renew the contract of Wilkins, who managed QPR and Fulham in the mid-1990s.
Chelsea are the reigning Premier League champions, and top this season's table with just under a third of the fixtures gone.
Wilkins is a fluent Italian speaker, and has been credited with maintaining strong links between the players and the coaching staff at Stamford Bridge.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/c/chelsea/9181246.stm
