Hiddink Provides Fantastic Update on John Terry Injury and Contract Situation
Chelsea are currently suffering major injury blows after some of their key players remain sidelined with serious fitness problems. This has seen interim boss Guus Hiddink become the latest manager to criticize the scheduling of the club’s fixtures especially the FA Cup after Chelsea injury concerns worsened and has urged Premier League clubs’ doctors to protest.
With the Blues currently facing a tight schedule with Norwich on Tuesday, Stoke City next weekend and then Paris Saint Germain, Hiddink has revealed his plans to overrule the medics and block John Terry playing against Norwich on Tuesday because he will surely be needed for the vital Champions League second-leg clash with PSG.
Terry is reportedly ready to return after a hamstring injury he picked up against Newcastle two weeks ago. Hiddink admitted that the England international is recovering very well.
“He was working this week but he said he was ok but not ready to play,” he said.
“If the medical staff say he is ready for tomorrow and John says so I’ll still be careful, because I have experience with these kind of injuries. The demands of a game are different. I prefer to wait in relation to the games coming up.”
Terry has been waiting to have a new contract at the club and Hiddink just said that he has advised the defender not to rush with the contract.
“I don’t think so. We talked. I told him ‘Hey, let’s take our time. Don’t rush things. It’s nothing to do with the contractual situation.”
Meanwhile, the manager has also revealed that he really likes defender Branislav Ivanovic, who has replaced Terry since he was sidelined with the hamstring injury.
“He’s not a big shouter, but the short commands he does is what I like about him very much as a manager,” he explained.
“I want what we do in training and team meetings to be executed by my key players like Branislav. That’s why I’m happy that players like Fabregas and Oscar are doing their job as well so it’s good to see that some players step up, not just in their personal performance but also organizing tactically.
Chelsea’s key players who may remain sidelined for the better part of the current season are Kurt Zouma, Radamel Falcao and Pedro. Pedro was substituted in only six minutes after suffering a hamstring injury in the Premier League clash against Southampton on Saturday.