Source: Eurosport
Hiddink Wary Of Shearer Effect
Guus Hiddink has warned Chelsea they will face a revitalised Newcastle following the appointment of Toon legend Alan Shearer as the club's temporary coach.[LNB]Hiddink has suffered twice at the hands of Shearer the player and the Dutchman expects him to lift the relegation-haunted Magpies when he takes charge of the side for the first time on Saturday.[LNB]Shearer was among the scorers when England beat Hiddink's Holland at Euro 96 and he also netted as Bobby Robson's Newcastle knocked PSV Eindhoven out of the UEFA Cup five years ago.[LNB]The former United striker's decision to leave the relative safety of BBC TV's 'Match of the Day' sofa and become the club's fourth manager this season has been greeted with typically bullish enthusiasm by the Geordie faithful.[LNB]Hiddink expects Newcastle to be a mirror image of Shearer's all-action playing style and the Dutch coach insists his players must meet the challenge.[LNB]"You have to respect the decision that has been made by whoever is in charge and there is always a reaction when something happens in a club," said Hiddink. "It was the same here.[LNB]"Everyone knows their situation. There will be a reaction from the team and the crowd and we can expect a tight game and a lot of fighting spirit from our opponents tomorrow.[LNB]"I respect him very much. I know him as a player. He is quite a personality and will have an influence on the team. There will be a hectic atmosphere tomorrow. It forces us to give everything we have.[LNB]"I cannot judge whether he will stay longer than eight games, that is not my big problem. But it is always good to have big players making a transition to a manager.[LNB]"But he will not play and I will not play. It is not a game between managers. The instant input and change in the dressing room will give their players a lot of energy and that is an extra aspect of the game we have to deal with tomorrow."[LNB]Chelsea have been rocked by an ankle injury to Ivorian striker Didier Drogba but, with one eye on Wednesday's Champions League quarter-final first leg against Liverpool, Hiddink will be hoping he can quickly regain his fitness.[LNB]Drogba jarred his ankle during shooting practice in training and, along with right-back Jose Bosingwa, who injured his hamstring on international duty with Portugal, the Chelsea medical staff face a race against time to get them back for the trip to Anfield.[LNB]"Bosingwa got a hamstring injury and will not be available for tomorrow," said Hiddink. "We will see what he can do up to Wednesday.[LNB]"Drogba has a problem. We did an exercise where he got injured and he will not be in the squad tomorrow.[LNB]"He has a problem in the ankle. We did some shooting practice and he hit the ground with his foot and it jarred in the ankle. But Nicolas Anelka is fit and will be in the squad."[LNB]Hiddink also revealed he had spoken to both Drogba and his Ivory Coast team-mate Salomon Kalou after the pair returned from the Ivory Coast following the stadium disaster that killed 19 fans.[LNB]Drogba scored twice as the Ivory Coast beat Malawi 5-0 but the game was marred by the tragic loss of life among the supporters.[LNB]"It is always good to have the players back after the international break," said Hiddink. "You talk about winning, or losing, but we also talked about this issue as well.[LNB]"Sometimes we forget there are other things in life and this was one of those issues that was more important than the daily madness of football.[LNB]"We talked about that and it was a tragedy. We are human beings as well so we don't just focus on the football. I don't neglect those issues."[LNB]Chelsea's hopes of winning the title were rocked by a defeat at Tottenham on the day Fulham handed leaders Manchester United a second successive defeat.[LNB]But Hiddink insists they will continue to fight for the title as long as it is mathematically possible to win it.[LNB]"As long as we have the chance to go on, we will fight for that," said Hiddink.[LNB]"We are still going for the title. Tottenham was a lost opportunity for us but we will continue to fight for the title while we can."[LNB]
