Three days after being told his job was secure and he had a contract until 2010, Henk Ten Cate has had his contract terminated with immediate effect. Chelsea’s website broke the story this afternoon and the removal of Ten Cate would seem to shut the door on any possibility of Frank Rijkaard taking over as Chelsea manager.

Speaking to Voetbal Magazine at the beginning of the week, Ten Cate had assured the magazine that he had been assured by Peter Kenyon on Saturday afternoon that he had a future at Chelsea. The statement on Chelsea’s website says “Chelsea Football Club can confirm that it terminated Henk Ten Cate’s contract today. This follows a meeting this morning.

“As a result of the team management changes at Chelsea FC, and in the light of any forthcoming appointment, it was clear this was the correct decision for all parties.

“Everybody at Chelsea would like to thank Henk for his contribution since coming to the club last year.”

The comments attributed to Ten Cate made me smile as it reminded me of when Kenyon announced to the world media in September that Jose Mourinho was the future of Chelsea Football Club. Mourinho left the club 3 days later. It seems that the club are clearing the decks for a new arrival and tallied to the comments from the Vice President of Portugal earlier today, could an announcement been in the offing?