Chelsea 3 Schalke 0: Terry praises Blues’ response after Magpies blip

John Terry praised Chelsea’s response after the Blues bounced back from a surprise loss at Newcastle by comfortably beating Schalke at Stamford Bridge.

The visitors spurned two early chances before Timo Hildebrand’s clearance deflected into the German side’s net off Samuel Eto’o in the 34th minute.

The Cameroon international added a second as he collected Willian’s pass and slotted past the German goalkeeper before Demba Ba sealed the win with seven minutes remaining.

“It was good response after the weekend. It was a shaky first 10 minutes from the lads but after the first goal we settled down and started to play,” Terry told Sky Sports.

“We were bitterly disappointed going up there [St James’ Park] and dropping three points. We wanted to respond and we spoke about it over three days.

“As I said, shaky opening 10-15 minutes, but after that, we controlled the game.”

Chelsea are now three points clear of second-placed Schalke after their victory over the Bundesliga outfit, and the Blues skipper feels the west London side are back in charge of Group E.

“Obviously the result puts us back in the driving seat in the group. The manager changed it about tonight and the players who came in responded,” he added.

“It’s given the manager food for thought for the next game. We’ve got so many games that it’s important we’re all fighting.”