Rio's second 'chance' meeting with Kenyon

Chelsea said: "This was a chance meeting in a public place... we've made it clear to United that we have no interest in signing Ferdinand." However, according to claims in the Daily Mirror today, Kenyon and Ferdinand arrived together at the Elysee Greek restaurant that evening, accompanied by Ferdinand's agent Pini Zahavi.

A reservation had been made for a table for four at 11.15pm, in Mr Zahavi's name. The party arrived around midnight. Restaurant co-owner Ulysses Karageorgis, 72, said: "They ordered champagne and seemed very happy. There was a hen party and the girls made a fuss of Rio and wanted their picture taken with him. Rio's party stayed for two hours, maybe two and a half hours.

"They ate fresh fruit and ordered several bottles of Moet and Chandon." Mr Karageorgis said that Ferdinand and Kenyon sat apart at first. He said: "Later they changed places. For a while Rio sat next to Kenyon and chatted together, sometimes jokingly, sometimes seriously. At about 2am Ferdinand's chauffeur came and he left alone. He had drunk champagne but he wasn't drunk. Then Mr Zahavi ordered a taxi for the others." Photographs show Ferdinand posing with some of the restaurant's customers while Kenyon stands nearby.

All the parties involved have denied that football was discussedat the meeting. An independent three-man commission has been appointed to look into a meeting held at a London hotel in January and attended by Mourinho, Cole and the player's agent. Arsenal had not given permission for the 24-year-old to attend the meeting.