World Sports Mikel signs five-year deal worth N4.7bn

SUPER Eagles midfield pearl John Obi Mikel on Wednesday officially inked a new five-year deal worth £16.8 million (about N4.704 billion) to remain at Chelsea FC of London till 2014.

But the 22-year-old Nigerian, who is thought to be on around £40,000 a week, will see his wages rise to around £70,000 a week after putting pen to paper on a five-year deal.

"It was easy to commit to because I am happy here and when the opportunity came it was good to sign after speaking to the club," Mikel told Chelsea's official website.

"My future with the new manager will be bright and I think we have a good working relationship already. All the managers I have played for here have their own type of systems they want us to play, and whoever comes in will want to change little bits and pieces.
"There is not much to change but they all bring in different views, and the new manager wants us to play in a certain formation which we need to get used to before the season starts."

The new style in question has seen Italian tactician Ancelotti adopt a rigid 4-4-2 formation during pre-season fixtures. That differs from the 4-3-3 option preferred by many of his predecessors, but Mikel insists the Chelsea squad are capable of adapting their game.

"It has been hard work getting back to fitness but we all want to be sharp for the start of the season, training is hard work but we have to do it," he added.

"The new formation doesn't make too much difference to me in defensive midfield, but perhaps it is a little harder as I have to cover more ground for the team, but I feel I am up to the task and I am sure I can do it.”