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Chelsea's Terry ready for round two with United

John Terry warned Manchester United FC "we're still right in the tie and we can do what they've done" after Chelsea FC's 1-0 home loss, pointing to an Old Trafford league win last season.

Skipper John Terry refuses to count out Chelsea just yet
Skipper John Terry refuses to count out Chelsea just yet ©Getty Images

Chelsea FC captain John Terry is convinced his side can turn their UEFA Champions League quarter-final around next Tuesday at Old Trafford after narrowly losing 1-0 to Manchester United FC in the first leg.

A deft 24th-minute finish from England striker Wayne Rooney at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday clearly put United in the driving seat. Boosted by the return from injury of Rio Ferdinand, as skipper Nemanja Vidić's partner in central defence, United worked hard to keep Chelsea at bay – and were helped in no small part by an error-free performance from Edwin van der Sar between the posts.

Chelsea's best chances came during a goalmouth scramble at the end of the first half, when Didier Drogba's cross for Fernando Torres struck the post and Frank Lampard's effort from the rebound was cleared off the line by Patrice Evra.

"It was frustrating," said Terry, who admitted that he "expected a little more" from a team that was supposedly itching to settle a score after losing the 2008 final to United on penalties in Moscow. "We'd love to have drawn the game at worst, but obviously we were expecting to win and wanted win."

However, the England defender believes Chelsea can still come out on top at Old Trafford, as they did in April 2010, when goals from Joe Cole and Drogba earned them three points in the Premier League. "It's not over, it's half-time," Terry said. "We went up there last year and beat them 2-1 when nobody expected us to – so we're capable of going up there and winning. It's clearly not over and we're certainly not giving up. And by no means are the lads letting their heads go down. We're still right in the tie and we can do what they've done tonight."

That spirit was echoed by Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Čech, though he highlighted how United stand to benefit from an away goal that will inevitably force Chelsea to push forward to at least level the tie. "When you're losing 1-0 at half-time you can still win the game," he said after what he described as "not the best of performances" from Carlo Ancelotti's men.

However, the Czech international acknowledged that "obviously now the result means we allow them to play the same type of game at Old Trafford. They will defend, they will counterattack, they will wait for their chances – which is their main strength and which makes the tie difficult for us." But Čech added: "We will go there and have a go."

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