Florent Malouda will quickly adjust to life with Chelsea, says one of his former coaches.

It was Victor Zvunka, as manager of Second Division Chateauroux, who unearthed Malouda in Guiana. Zvunka told the Sunday Mirror: "As luck would have it, the Variety Club of France - a gathering of sport and media personalities - had a testimonial match scheduled in Guiana. Florent was playing with local kids in a curtain-raiser. Michel Platini was in our team and stood with me on the touchline.

"Platini raised his eyebrows and told me, 'That is going to be some player'. I didn't say a word because I had already arranged to meet his parents after the match. I was scared stiff others might try to get on the bandwagon and couldn't wait for our own match to finish.

"Florent was like a kid from Brazil, which borders his homeland. There was a samba rhythm in his movement. I was very excited.

"The only thing his mum insisted on was that he continue his schooling in France. He is a very bright lad and got the equivalent of your A levels in electrical engineering.

"His only drawback in those days was he did not think enough about scoring goals. He was often clumsy when presented with chances and that probably affected his confidence."

In fact, Malouda had to live for some time with the wounding nickname of "Florent Maladroit". Chelsea fans are unlikely to find any echoes of that now.

Zvunka added: "They will love him, and so will Jose Mourinho because he is a team player who likes to work back. He was always able to do his share of defending in a 4-4-2 and operates well with an overlapping full-back.

"I can't wait to see him with Didier Drogba. They found each other with their eyes closed when Florent moved on to play with him at Guingamp."

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