UNITED KINGDOM: SOCCER/FOOTBALL - Chelsea coach Jose Mourinho aims to play Terry against Spurs in FA Cup

Jose Mourinho will play the commanding figure of captain John Terry at the heart of his defence in the FA Cup against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday if he gets the final go-ahead from doctors. England captain Terry completed a second day of training on Friday and he and his manager are eager for him to start the quarter-final, two weeks after he was knocked out during Chelsea's League Cup final victory over Spurs' north London rivals Arsenal. Chelsea, who were drawn against Valencia on Friday in the Champions League quarter-finals, are still in the running for three more trophies and Terry is pivotal to their success. "He's training normal, he is doing everything like everybody else, he's heading the ball, he's doing absolutely everything so if it was my choice I would say yes but it is not my choice, I have to wait for a final report from the medical side, and the medical side will make that decision but yes I want him to play." Mourinho told a news conference at Chelsea's training ground on Friday (March 9). The Portuguese coach was keener to talk about the imminent match against Tottenham than about April's clash with Valencia, but he did describe them as a "very good Spanish team". "When you progress and you get into the last eight of the competition, there are not many easy draws, no one is an easy draw. Every team to be here went through a group phase and through a knock-out one, only good teams are there, and it's just a question of the culture and the style of the opponent you get, and in this case we got a Spanish team, a good, a very good Spanish team," Mourinho said. Chelsea, who are also chasing Manchester United in the Premier League, have a crowded schedule and will lose most of their squad in March for international duty. "I know it's still a month, during that month a lot of things can happen - two international, national team matches before the Champions League match, it's something very difficult to deal with because of instead of preparing a big quarter-final of Champions League I will be just on my own for two weeks in Cobham praying for my players be back safe from the national team but we look forward for the game against Valencia," Mourinho said. Chelsea have suffered a spate of injuries to top players this season with goalkeeper Petr Cech out for three months with a head injury, winger Joe Cole sidelined most of the season with a fractured foot and Terry suffering back, ankle and now head injuries. Some teams in the knockout competitions had an advantage in that they were battling on only one front, Mourinho said. Mourinho said he and the players would not take the Spurs game lightly. They wanted to win the FA Cup because it was the only domestic trophy the group had not won since he arrived in 2004 and because it was likely to return to Wembley. The twice Premier League champions won the last FA Cup staged at Wembley in 2000 before the stadium was demolished and rebuilt.

ITN Source | March 10, 2007

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