England survived another World Cup injury scare last night as a scan on John Terry's right foot showed no broken bone. The Chelsea captain hurt his foot in training yesterday morning, leading to fears that he may have broken a metatarsal, but a scan revealed no major problem. Terry hopes to play in the FA Cup final for the English champions on Saturday when they hope to complete the league and cup double in their clash with Portsmouth at Wembley.
Terry said in a statement last night: "I took a slight knock in training but with such an important match on Saturday the right course of action was to put a protective boot on my right foot and have a CT scan. "The scan has shown there is no break and I am hoping to train tomorrow if not Friday and of course play in the FA Cup final on Saturday." The 29-year-old centre-back's fitness has been a concern for Chelsea and England at various stages in recent years. In December 2007 he fractured a metatarsal and was out for 14 games. The news that Terry has not suffered any major damage will be a huge relief for Fabio Capello, the England coach, as he prepares for the World Cup. Terry was named in the Italian's provisional 30-man squad alongside fellow centre-halves Rio Ferdinand, Jamie Carragher, Michael Dawson, Ledley King and Matthew Upson.
His scan was the latest in a line of pre-tournament injury scares for England. Wayne Rooney, the Manchester United striker, limped out of Sunday's match against Stoke but, like his teammate Ferdinand - who has been suffering from a recurring back injury - has received a positive diagnosis from his club. Gareth Barry, the Manchester City midfielder, is Capello's biggest ongoing injury concern with an ankle injury.
Meanwhile, Diego Maradona disregarded the vast experience of Esteban Cambiasso and Javier Zanetti, the 136-cap record holder, when he named his 30-man provisional Argentina World Cup squad. Zanetti, a veteran of the 1998 and 2002 World cups, and Cambiasso, who helped Argentina reach the 2002 quarter-finals, are both key players in the Inter Milan side that reached the Champions League final at the expense of holders Barcelona.
Maradona, Argentina's World Cup-winning captain in 1986, also overlooked Lucho Gonzalez, the Marseille midfielder, who played at the 2006 finals, and Fernando Gago of Real Madrid. On the other hand, he recalled Liverpool's Maxi Rodriguez, who he appeared to have discarded altogether during the qualifiers, and also found room for Fabricio Coloccini, who spent the season playing in the second tier of English football, for Newcastle United in the Championship.
Maradona, who has called up more than 100 players during his 18 months in charge, sprang a surprise by picking several locally based players who impressed him in the last friendly, a 4-0 home win over a weak Haiti side last week. Seven strikers were picked, including Lionel Messi, the world's best player. Maradona said he wanted Barcelona's Messi to roam freely and not be tied down tactically while he was building a good defensive platform from which to launch Argentina's game.
"I don't want him stationed on the [touch] line ... All the balls have to pass through him," Maradona told Fox Sports. "I'm going to defend with four centre backs, but I'm also going to have full-backs available in case we need to improve coming out of defence." * Compiled by Thomas Woods, with agencies
