Match reports

The Guardian, Kevin McCarra: "Chelsea might have pined for the many occasions in which Champions League matches truly are bland. This opening to Group D felt as if it belonged to a far more advanced date in the Champions League calendar. Domestic matches in this stadium seldom keep the goalkeeper Petr Cech so occupied."

Daly Telegraph, Henry Winter: "Utterly in keeping with the monsoon conditions, Chelsea made heavy weather of defeating Porto on Tuesday night. Nicolas Anelka steadied the ship, scoring a wonderful winner just after the break, but this was hardly the confident start to the Champions League expected under Carlo Ancelotti."

The Times, Oliver Kay: "days, after a week in which he was forced to abandon a planned ascent of Mount Kilimanjaro, but back at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea’s latest crusade in the Champions...

Match reports

The Observer, Joe Lovejoy: "Hands up who thought Terry, Lampard, Cole et al would have more trouble with Stoke than Croatia. You liars, but that's the way it was at the Britannia, when Chelsea had to come from a goal down to win in stoppage time with a goal from Florent Malouda."

Independent on Sunday, Myles Hodgson: "If evidence were needed of Chelsea's capacity to overcome the impact of Fifa's transfer embargo and mount a sustainable title challenge, Florent Malouda's injury-time winner provided it by continuing their 100 per cent winning start to the season. Demonstrating considerable resolve against a whole-hearted Stoke City, it was a victory which set down a marker to their Premier League rivals."

Sunday Telegraph, Oliver Brown: "Florent Malouda was once Chelsea's forgotten man but yesterday he...

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The fallout from the Kakuta transfer ban continues.

Both Manchester clubs could also be in trouble.

City have been reported to Fifa by Rennes for the "unlawful" transfer of teenage defender Jérémy Hélan.

"Manchester City must now realise the consequences of their attitude in the Hélan case as it is even more illegal than Kakuta," Rennes' technical director, Pierre Dreossi, told The Independent.

United have been accused by Le Havre of offering financial inducements to 16-year-old Paul Pogba's family in order to lure him to Old Trafford. United have denied any wrongdoing and have threatened to take legal action.

More serious is the news that Fiorentina have been in contact with Fifa about United's signing of 16-year-old defender Michele Fornasier.

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BBC Match of the Day commentator and blogger Steve Wilson asks:

The latest Chelsea FC and football news in links.

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The Independent has an anatomy of the Kakuta deal that led to the transfer ban.

"I told Peter Kenyon that Kakuta had signed a contract. In France we call it the contract aspirant. Players are not allowed to sign professional deals until they are 16 so instead they sign a bridging deal with the clubs. It is a deal that says when they get to 16 they will agree to sign a professional contract with the club. Kakuta's contract was lodged with the FFF [French Football Federation]. It was all above board. He was our player."

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The Telegraph says our chances of a successful appeal appear slim. We face limited legal options, according to legal experts.

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But we could be allowed to sign new players in the January 2010 transfer window despite the Fifa ban, according...

Chelsea have been banned from signing any new players in the next two registration periods (transfer windows) by FIFA.

Football's governing body have handed down the punishment after French club Lens made an official complaint over Chelsea's signing of Gael Kakuta in 2007.

FIFA's Dispute Resolution Chamber was called to pass a decision in the contractual dispute between the two clubs. 

The full statement from FIFA reads: "On the occasion of its last meeting held on 27 August 2009, the Dispute Resolution Chamber (DRC) was called to pass a decision in a contractual dispute opposing the French club Lens to the French player Gael Kakuta and the English club Chelsea.

"The French club had lodged a claim with FIFA seeking compensation for breach of contract from the player and requesting also sporting sanctions to be imposed on the player and the English club for breach of contract and inducement to breach of contract respectively.

"The DRC found that the player had indeed breached a contract signed with the French club. Equally, the DRC deemed it to be established that the English club induced the player to such a breach.

"As a result the player was condemned to pay compensation in the amount of €780,000, for which the clu...