Yuri Zhirkov has said that his ambition is to become a regular for Chelsea. The Russian has endured a miserable start to the season following his £18million summer move to Stamford Bridge after being sidelined by a persistent ankle injury he suffered in pre-season.

But Zhirkov finally ended his frustration last night when he made his debut in Chelsea’s 1-0 Carling Cup victory over QPR.

The left wing-back said: “This is Chelsea, I don’t think anything needs to be said about the club.

“Everything is done at the highest level here. You have the best players here and the best facilities at the training ground and now I have to prove I am at this level too.”