ENGLISH LEAGUE CUP FOURTH ROUND Chelsea v Bolton Wanderers: CARLO ANCELOTTI'S commitment to injury prevention, first adopted at Milan, will see him rest key members of his Chelsea team tonight, including Frank Lampard and John Terry, in a move that should benefit national sides at next year's World Cup finals.
The Italian has brought with him many of the techniques developed at Milan by his assistant first-team coach, Bruno Demichelis, aimed effectively at preventing injuries brought on by fatigue.
Terry has averaged around 50 games a season for club and country in recent years despite occasional back problems, and Lampard nearer 60, though Ancelotti has indicated he will seek to keep both fresh in the current campaign, despite the players’ desire to feature every week.
“They do want to play every game, even this season,” said Ancelotti. “But, for them, it’s better sometimes to rest. For me it is a surprise [that players have maintained their fitness over long seasons] because in England matches are very strong and played with a lot of intensity.
“It is different to Italy, where the intensity is a bit down because matches are more tactical. But the players realise it’s important to give their bodies some recovery time. Lampard, for example, is not a young player any more. You have to maintain good control.”
The League Cup fourth-round tie with Bolton Wanderers this evening will provide Ancelotti with an opportunity to field fringe players and others returning after injuries, with Lampard, Didier Drogba and Michael Essien to start on the bench and Terry, Petr Cech, Nicolas Anelka and Ricardo Carvalho rested.
Daniel Sturridge will make his first start alongside Deco, Paulo Ferreira, Michael Ballack, Joe Cole, Salomon Kalou, Henrique Hilario and Florent Malouda. Alex will play his first game of the season after a groin injury.
“If I have a possibility to give rest to the players, and above all those who play for their national teams, it’s better for me to do so,” said Ancelotti.
“At the moment John Terry and Anelka are in very good condition but if we want to maintain that and keep them fit, it’s better to give them a rest. If we do that then, for example, Terry and Lampard will be in very good condition and will have a fantastic World Cup.
“It’s very important to seek to prevent injuries. In the last years not only Milan but a lot of clubs have turned their attentions to prevention of injuries and recovery, and not only on the work-load [in training]. That’s the difference between now and 20 years ago. When I played, it was work, work, work every day.
“These days you work hard with intensity but it’s also important to give the players rest to prevent injuries. We used this in Milan and we’re using it now at Chelsea.”
Injury concerns remain over Ashley Cole, Yuri Zhirkov and Jose Bosingwa, all of whom will struggle to feature in Saturday’s game at Bolton, though Chelsea have no concerns over the outbreak of swine flu which has beset their opponents.
Guardian Service
