Juan Mata’s recovery is bonus for Chelsea

 
6 November 2012

Chelsea have been handed a major boost ahead of their Champions League game against Shakhtar Donetsk tomorrow night, with Juan Mata and David Luiz both returning to training.

Mata and Luiz missed the 1-1 draw at Swansea on Saturday with hamstring and ankle injuries respectively and there were fears they would not be ready to face the Ukrainian side.

Now the duo are expected to feature at Stamford Bridge, with Mata’s availability of particular importance as he has been Chelsea’s best player this season and has scored seven goals in his last eight games.

However, Ashley Cole is troubled by an ankle problem and could be replaced by Ryan Bertrand.

Chelsea could also find themselves in third place in Group E with two matches to go if they fail to beat Shakhtar, who went three points clear at the top after defeating Roberto di Matteo’s side 2-1 in Donetsk two weeks ago.

Juventus are just one point behind Chelsea, but are expected to beat Danish side Nordsjaellend at home.

The win over Chelsea has given Shakhtar confidence that they can emulate the Blues and win the trophy this season. Darijo Srna said: “In the past few years we have had a lot of success, winning the Ukrainian Premier League, Ukrainian Cup and the Europa League. Now our goal is to win the Champions League.”

Meanwhile, Stamford Bridge has been chosen to as the venue to stage this season’s UEFA Women’s Champions League final on May 23.

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