Ancelotti signs up John Terry & Ashley Cole for life

With all transfer activity over for the next four months - save the acquisition of free agents and emergency cover for goalkeepers, for example - the Premier League's big clubs are now ensuring that the players who they already employ are feeling adequately loved.

Chelsea appear to have secured the services of Ashley Cole for the rest of the best years of his career, giving the 28-year-old England defender a four-year deal that will bump his wages up to £120,000 a week.

This follows Monday's announcement that his international colleague John Terry had penned a five-year contract for £170,000 a week at Stamford Bridge, and allows Carlo Ancelotti the luxury of knowing - injury permitting - what half his defense will look like until at least 2013.

Interestingly, Ancelotti has made few moves on the transfer market since he arrived in west London at the beginning of July, with the versatile left-sided midfielder Yuri Zhirkov the only major purchase for £18m from CSKA Moscow, and suggests that the wily Italian saw little need to improve on the squad already assembled at Chelsea.

Cole, who joined the west Londoners in 2006 after an acrimonious parting of ways with previous employers Arsenal, recently described the club as being like a "family" and said "the spirit is better than I have ever seen it."

Meanwhile across London at the Emirates, Arsene Wenger has also been busy nailing down many of his players to long-term deals. Brazilian midfielder Denilson and the Dane Nicklas Bendtner, both 21, joined Theo Walcott, Robin van Persie, Aaron Ramsey, Jack Wilshere and Kieran Gibbs in committing themselves to the club.

With Wenger having happily waved goodbye to Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure over the close season, both joining Manchester City for almost £40m, the Frenchman's objectives are clear - he wants to develop a team from the ranks of the Arsenal youth system and not be reliant on the whims of the transfer markets.

That two of the more astute managers in the Premier League are changing the emphasis of their recruitment policies suggests a reevaluation of the 'buy at all costs' mentality arguably ushered in by Chelsea under their Russian billionaire chairman Roman Abramovich.

In light of the shifting tectonic plates of European football, with the Spanish league becoming the ultimate destination once again for the world's players, this would appear to be a highly sensible ploy. ·