Football
9y

Five Chelsea players limited in training ahead of PSG, Jose Mourinho says

Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho lauded Branislav Ivanovic's knack of scoring key goals after revealing the Serbia defender was one of five players who took a limited part in training ahead of the Champions League last-16 first leg draw at Paris Saint-Germain.

Mourinho's men can afford to feel optimistic about their chances of advancing to the quarterfinals after Ivanovic netted a vital away goal in the 1-1 draw at Parc des Princes.

Edinson Cavani equalised and PSG showed enough for Chelsea to be wary in the second leg on March 11, but the Blues are better placed than against the French side last season when they needed Demba Ba's last-gasp strike to advance to the semi-finals on away goals.

"[Eden] Hazard, Willian, Oscar, [Cesc] Fabregas, Ivanovic, they didn't train," Mourinho said. "They did some individual training just to try to keep rolling and moving. Yesterday they trained because [the media] were there.

"Fabregas had three days in bed, came to play without training. Injured guys [played] without training. They gave everything."

Ivanovic scored the decisive goal in the 2013 Europa League final and netted against Liverpool last month as Chelsea advanced to next month's Capital One Cup final.

"Iva has more this feeling in big occasions," Mourinho added. "It looks like he chooses the moment."

Mourinho played down Chelsea's favourites' tag.

"The advantage is minimal," he added. "Obviously a two-leg game is now one leg. Now everything is decided at Stamford Bridge, not in two matches where they have a fantastic record [at home].

"It's not a victory, 3-0 or 4-0 that ends the story. They are a fantastic team, fantastic players. We did OK."

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