LONDON, 1 June 2005 — Chelsea, their manager Jose Mourinho and Arsenal defender Ashley Cole will discover their fate today following the Premier League’s “tapping up” enquiry.

A three-man independent commission interviewed Cole, Mourinho and Chelsea chief executive Peter Kenyon earlier this month following their meeting in January which Arsenal claimed breached Premier League rules.

The result will be announced today when, subject to guilty verdicts, the punishments are likely to be heavy fines and warnings all round. Chelsea, who won the Premier League from Arsenal by 12 points this season, could be docked points ahead of next season.

The Premier League might be forced to tread carefully, however, if Cole argued that their rules preventing talks with other clubs breached European employment law, particularly as the exact nature of the meeting remains vague.

Mourinho initially denied that he and Kenyon had met Cole, saying he was in Milan speaking with (Inter) striker Adriano when the meeting took place, while Cole, who is contracted to Arsenal until 2007, has never denied his presence.

The involvement of agents - representing Cole and Chelsea — further clouds the issue as they are not subject to the same Premier League rules as players and clubs.

Arsenal chairman David Dein made the initial complaint about Chelsea’s approach and also gave evidence at the hearing.

He said recently “nobody would be leaving the club”, although manager Arsene Wenger has expressed concern that Cole’s agent might persuade him to look elsewhere.

The lure of Chelsea and the huge funds of owner Roman Abramovich means he would be unlikely to go too far.

After Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand “coincidentally” met Kenyon last month he returned to his club demanding a tripling of his salary.

Chelsea’s spending power was further illustrated two weeks ago by the comments of Athletic Bilbao defender Asier del Horno, who was linked with a move to the London club.

“If you look at the figures that are being talked about then it seems unthinkable that a team would pay that sort of money for me,” he said. Spanish media reported the English champions are offering between 14 million ($17.71 million) and 18 million euros ($22.77 million) for the defender and are prepared to pay him a salary of up to three million euros, over three times what he now earns.

Bilbao president Fernando Lamikiz said there had been no approach from Chelsea but added: “If the figures are correct then this would be an incredible offer that no other team in European football would be capable of making.”

It is that power that has caused Wenger to speak out in protest.