The former Toon striker went public last month, saying there was only one man for the vacant Ipswich job - and it WASN'T Mick McCarthy.
Chopra: "The man we need is Alan Shearer, no doubt about it.
"He is the man I would go for, and I'm sure the players would like that too."
It didn't happen, former Mackem McCarthy got the job, but he insists Chopra isn’t out of his plans.
Chopra, introduced from the bench late on at Leicester on Saturday, has been a sub in each of McCarthy’s four games in charge but the new Blues boss, who admits he knows little of the striker’s off-field issues, says he rates the former Newcastle, Sunderland and Cardiff man highly.
Mick McCarthy: “I’ve a lot of time for Chops.
“And certainly in terms of his ability he’s been one of the really good Championship players over the last few years. I’d like to get that happening again.
“I actually don’t know about his problems. I just want to see him on the pitch. I’ve watched him in training. He’s one of the best players here, there’s no doubt about that.
“Why he’s not been in the team is for other people. I’m seeing what he’s doing and I’ve been impressed with him.
“But in DJ Campbell we’ve got Johnny on the spot at the minute, who is sticking the ball in the net, and I think Murph playing up front with him is a good foil for him.”