Petr Cech injury, Didier Drogba surgery and Ross Turnbull blunder trouble Chelsea’s Carlo Ancelotti
Bad news is starting to pile up for Chelsea, as initial reports have confirmed that Chelsea’s world class striker Didier Drogba will not be able to take part in the opening matches of the English Premier League season, as he has undergone surgery after his unfortunate groin injury.
Chelsea officials have relayed information from the doctors that one of the best strikers in the world, Ivory Coast’s Drogba, will be out for approximately three weeks in a recovery and rehabilitation process following the surgery.
This has been a shocker for the Blues, as they are about to start their campaign in the English Premier League along the same time and will look forward to every single match in the attempt to defend their title. Their first EPL match is on the 14th of August against West Bromwich Albion.
In a media release from Chelsea officials, they said, “Didier Drogba successfully underwent minimally invasive surgery yesterday (Friday) on the groin injury that had troubled him for some of last season.
"The decision to perform the procedure after his return from the World Cup was made to optimize his rehabilitation, and he is expected to return to full training in approximately three weeks."
The 32 year old became the highest scorer in EPL last season, producing 29 goals in 32 caps, and overall he made 37 goals in 44 appearances. The maestro is now resting, and the Chelsea board has declared that all the players of the team that have returned form the World Cup will be given rest so as to not exhaust them in the next season.
Chelsea, who have some light games in the start of their season against West Brom, Wigan Athletic, and Stoke City, will now have to be sharper against them, and the reason for that is not just Drogba.
Just a few days ago, their number 1 choice for goalkeeper, Petr Cech, injured his calf in a training session. Doctors have diagnosed him with torn muscle ligaments, and he, too, is out of play for the next 3 weeks, making the situation even direr.
The defending champions Chelsea needed to have a blistering start to the season not just to prove the point that they were still the best, but to acknowledge that even without Michael Ballack, Juliano Belletti and Joe Cole, they weren’t a weak side. In a shocking decision, Chelsea had earlier refused to renew the contracts of these players and now Ballack is in his former club Bayern Leverkusen, Belletti in Fluminense and Joe Cole in Liverpool.
Their matches after Stoke on 28th August continue in September, with them facing West Ham United, Blackpool and then they reach their final match of the month in EPL against the Citizens, Manchester City. Just before that, their Champions League journey is about to start, to which will take initiation in the mid of September.
Now that Drogba is out, along with the goalkeeper, Chelsea’s manager Carlo Ancelotti will surely be having a tough time to think of how to balance out his team, especially after the Ross Turnbull blunder in the friendly match against Ajax, which Chelsea lost 3-1.
In the match against Ajax, Turnbull proved that Chelsea was indeed in trouble if Cech wasn’t around. This does not bode well for the side, which face Manchester United in the Community Shield match on the 8th of August.
On the goalkeeping issue, Ancelotti said, “Everyone could see Turnbull didn't have a good performance but that can happen to any young 'keeper and I still trust him”.
The injury to Drogba must have demoralized the player, as he was just deemed fit after the World Cup fiasco, where he broke his arm just before the tournament and eventually had to play as a substitute.
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