Chelsea captain Terry out for three weeks with knee injury

Nov 16, 2012 1:11:00 PM

Roberto Di Matteo also revealed that Frank Lampard will not recover in time for the trip to West Brom, a club which the 42-year-old has mixed memories of from his time as boss

Chelsea manager Roberto Di Matteo has confirmed John Terry will be sidelined for three weeks with a knee injury.

Initial fears were that the centre-back suffered a long-term injury after twisting his knee when colliding with Liverpool's Luis Suarez in the 1-1 draw on Sunday and subsequently stretchered off the field.

However, MRI scans after the clash showed no significant damage to the cruciate ligaments, but Di Matteo insisted that any length of time without their skipper is a big blow.

"With [Terry] we're looking at approximately three weeks out, fortunately it's not as bad as we first thought," Di Matteo told reporters.

"Terry's injury was unfortunate as he looked sharp and gave the team a lot of confidence, but you have to deal with injuries."

The defender will therefore miss Saturday's trip to West Brom along with Frank Lampard, who is suffering from an ongoing calf problem picked up against Shakhtar Donetsk in October.

Di Matteo admitted that the midfielder is nearing a return, but won't feature, while stating his hope that the 34-year-old ends his career in west London.


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He continued: "Frank Lampard won't be featuring at West Brom but he's not far off, we want to make sure he's 100 per cent and not take risks.

"Frank's been a fantastic player for us and it would be nice for him to finish his career at Chelsea."

The trip to the Hawthorns will see Di Matteo return to the club he managed between 2009 and 2011, after he was sacked following a poor run of form over the Christmas period - his last game a 3-0 defeat to Manchester City.

The 42-year-old insisted he has no regrets about his time with the Baggies, indicating the experience improved him as a manager, while looking back on Chelsea's 1-0 loss at the Hawthorns last season.

He added: "I had a great time at West Brom, worked with some great people and the fans were really good to me, I have fond memories.

"If you have a long career you will get the sack at some point, it makes you stronger and doesn't mean you are a bad coach.

"We didn't play well there last season, the defeat led to a reaction and it was a very difficult time."

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