Chelsea’s Florent Malouda has made a quick return to fitness after twisting his ankle lately. Now the French international is set to face Liverpool this weekend.
Carlo Ancelotti spoke about his Chelsea squad in terms of team news ahead of the match which will take place on Sunday. The Italian manager confirmed Frank Lampard’s absence and Florent Malouda’s quick recovery, but he tipped Essien as doubtful during an interview. ESPN Soccernet quoted Ancelotti as saying:
“I can give you nine men: Cech, Ivanovic, Alex, Terry, Cole, Mikel, Zhirkov, Anelka and Drogba. Malouda or Kalou, Essien or Ramires.
“But we have a little problem with Essien. We’re not sure if he’ll be fit Sunday. He has a problem on his toe. Well, it’s a little problem and I hope he’ll be available to play.
“I think he’ll travel for Liverpool, and then we’ll make a decision on Sunday morning. But Malouda is available to play. He recovered very well and the other players are okay.”
Talking specifically about Frank Lampard, Chelsea’s Carlo Ancelotti concluded:
“He’s not available for this game. We’ll have to take more time with him. Next week, he’ll finally be ready. Now, he has started to train. So, we have taken time to make sure that he is 100 percent fit. We don’t want to take a risk.”
Chelsea could open a 8-point gap at the top of the English Premier League standings with a victory on Sunday whereas Liverpool will try to follow up their recent positive record with a third vital win on the trot.
“I can give you nine men: Cech, Ivanovic, Alex, Terry, Cole, Mikel, Zhirkov, Anelka and Drogba. Malouda or Kalou, Essien or Ramires.
“But we have a little problem with Essien. We’re not sure if he’ll be fit Sunday. He has a problem on his toe. Well, it’s a little problem and I hope he’ll be available to play.
“I think he’ll travel for Liverpool, and then we’ll make a decision on Sunday morning. But Malouda is available to play. He recovered very well and the other players are okay.”
Talking specifically about Frank Lampard, Chelsea’s Carlo Ancelotti concluded:
“He’s not available for this game. We’ll have to take more time with him. Next week, he’ll finally be ready. Now, he has started to train. So, we have taken time to make sure that he is 100 percent fit. We don’t want to take a risk.”
Chelsea could open a 8-point gap at the top of the English Premier League standings with a victory on Sunday whereas Liverpool will try to follow up their recent positive record with a third vital win on the trot.
