Malouda: Chelsea omission is petty

Chelsea midfielder Florent Malouda has described his exile at Chelsea as "petty".

The 32-year-old France international is in the final year of his contract since his 2007 move to Stamford Bridge, and was excluded from this season’s 25-man first-team squad.

As a result, he has spent the term training with the club’s under-21 team, and revealed to French press that a year on the sidelines has given him mental strength.

"The details I'll explain when I'm free, but the strategy they use is to make me look like a player seeking substantial compensation," the midfielder told France-Guyane.

"It's petty, but more than anything else it makes me smile because it shows how these people regard me.

"If you are excluded for one year, it is very, very long. You must be armed mentally.

"All this is done to break me mentally, but in reality it motivates me enormously."

The Frenchman has been recently linked to a move to Russia, where the transfer window remains open until the end of February, though he declined further comment on his Chelsea future due to "confidentiality”.