Van Basten: Robben can be the best

"It is great for me that I can now play him for Holland. We have played five games without him and it is nice to train with him in the squad.

"It would have been nice for me to play with him because he is not a bad player at all." Robben's contribution in the last month for Chelsea has led to pundits searching for superlatives. The pace, skill and goalscoring ability of the former PSV Eindhoven midfielder appears to have tilted the Premiership title race in Chelsea's favour and he has been hailed as the most influential foreign signing since Eric Cantona.

While Van Basten believes Robben has the potential to become the world's best, Chelsea team-mate Mateja Kezman insists he can already be counted as a European great.

Kezman, who also played with Robben at PSV, said: "He's one of the best players in Europe at the moment. He's strong, quick and has two good feet, which means he can go inside or outside the opponent. He has everything that a top player needs and can beat players with one touch of the ball.

"He's dangerous with every touch of the ball and no opponent can keep him away from the goal, whether it's a free-kick, an assist or a goal. Everything seems very easy to him but he works very hard. He's always the last to leave training."

Having eradicated the diving that marred his performances at the European

Championship, Robben is aiming to continue his goalscoring run at international level.

He said: "I am going into the game with a lot of confidence. I am satisfied with the way I am playing for Chelsea. I am always looking for a goal, but the most important thing is that I also create chances for my team-mates."