Chelsea captain John Terry is a doubt for Friday night’s match against Liverpool at Stamford Bridge after rolling his ankle in the closing moments of Sunday’s game against Swansea City, the club have confirmed.
The 35-year-old was seen departing the Liberty Stadium with the aid of crutches after the game, which was a fiery affair that ended 2-2. In the wake of the match he posted a video to his social media account on Instagram of him undergoing some treatment on his ankle, injured during a challenge with the scorer of Swansea’s second goal Leroy Fer.
It is believed that there is bruising and swelling under the ankle bone, meaning that the centre-back will have to have a scan in order to determine exactly what the problem is. He had a scan in the wake of the match but it was inconclusive. Terry has suffered numerous injuries during his long career and in the past even had injections in order to ensure he made it onto the field of play. The nature of the injury combined with his age means that he’s almost certain to miss the game against the Reds, however.
Chelsea lost 3-1 to Liverpool at Stamford Bridge last season when the club’s former manager José Mourinho was still in charge. It was a result that put the self-proclaimed ‘Special One’ under significant pressure and eventually led to Roman Abramovich, the Chelsea owner, sacking the Portuguese manager for the second time in his career. The Blues beat Liverpool 1-0 in a pre-season game in California, with Gary Cahill scoring a header before Cesc Fabregas was sent off.
If Terry fails to pass a fitness test then it is likely that David Luiz will be brought in to replace him. The Brazilian was sold by Chelsea to Paris Saint-Germain for £50 million back in 2014; it was a world record fee for a defender at the time. He was re-signed to the West London club on Deadline Day of the transfer window in August for £34 million, signing a three-year contract.
Should Luiz start that might well please Liverpool fans. The 29-year-old’s Premier League debut the first time he signed for Chelsea came against the Merseyside club when he replaced José Boswinga from the bench. The Blues went on to lose the match 1-0 and the Jürgen Klopp’s men will be hoping that history repeats itself.
Speaking after the game against Swansea the new Chelsea head coach Antonio Conte said he wasn’t too worried about Terry and that the injury would be assessed as the week goes on. The Italian said, “I don’t know the extent of the injury but tomorrow we will see the situation about his ankle. But he is a warrior. I am not worried”.