Chelsea manager Guus Hiddink announced in his Friday press conference that Diego Costa broke his nose on an academy player’s head (side note: that kid must have a metal Terminator head) during training. He then dubbed his side “a Zorro team” in reference to the fact that Costa will be their fourth player to wear a mask this season.
Chelsea have been at the forefront of masked footballing for a number of years now. Here’s a look back…
Cesar Azpilicueta
Nemanja Matic
Gary Cahill
Cesc Fabregas
Ramires
Fernando Torres
Demba Ba
Paulo “The Phantom of the Opera” Ferreira
Petr “Darth Vader” Cech
John “Transparent Nightmare” Terry
Honorable Mention: Michael Ballack (a former Chelsea player who wore a mask while playing against Chelsea, presumably to demonstrate his lasting affection for the club)
So if you’re scoring at home, that’s a rather strong masked starting XI of Cech; Azpilicueta, Terry, Cahill, Ferreira; Ramires, Fabregas, Matic; Torres, Costa, Ba (with moral support from Ballack).