Gary Cahill says belief can triumph over adversity once more as Chelsea bid to advance to the Champions League final.
The London club, who drew 0-0 at Atletico Madrid in Tuesday night's semi-final first leg, were without the suspended John Terry and his fellow defender Branislav Ivanovic when the won the competition in 2012. Terry may feature if they reach the May 24 final in Lisbon, but an ankle injury rules him out of next week's second leg with Atletico, while Petr Cech (dislocated shoulder) is out for the season and Frank Lampard and his fellow midfielder John Obi Mikel are banned.
It leaves Jose Mourinho with limited options and he has suggested he may field a weakened team at Anfield in a move which could help Liverpool to the title.
With Chelsea five points adrift of Liverpool with three to play, Mourinho wants to prioritise the Champions League. Mourinho plans to consult the club hierarchy, before determining his team selection at Anfield, but his view is that an alternative team is required as the second leg with Atletico is now the priority and Cahill agrees.
"We look back at how we coped with a similar situation on the way to winning it in 2012 and it gives us confidence," he said. "I'm sure the manager would prefer to have every single player fit and healthy for selection but that's not going to be the case. We're really, really close to the final now, we have one more game at home and have to give it every single thing we've got."
Mourinho, his assistant Rui Faria and midfielder Ramires were charged by the FA yesterday for their actions in last Saturday's loss to Sunderland. Mourinho could not hide his anger afterwards behind a sarcastic appraisal of the officials, while Faria was dismissed for confronting the officials. Ramires avoided punishment for his flailing arm striking Sebastian Larsson but now faces retrospective action.
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