Hearts on fire: Hiddink praises John Terry's strong desire

If I were feeling more motivated, I'd flesh out the Rocky IV references beyond just the headline.  But I'm in offseason mode already.  Unlike John Terry, who, and these are Hiddink's words, always has that "deep down fire" in his body, in his soul.

"He was almost unapproachable when he got his physical setback."

"He's not a player who says, 'OK, it's the end of my career, or maybe I have one or two years more'. The desire is there, and you see it in training sessions as well."

"He's always motivated. I never had one training session with him - even in my previous spell (in 2009) with different players - where I said, 'Hey, John, today you were not there'. He was always there. In training, he's tackling (the same) whether it's one day before the game or one or two days after the game. I have to put the brake on a bit, which means the desire is still high."

-Guus Hiddink; source: Sky

It's actually Terry's overeagerness that had extended his current spell on the sidelines.  He tried to come back a little early, he tried to do too much, and ended up injured again.  But with time running out on his time at Chelsea, his hurry is understandable.

Fortunately, it sounds like he'll be ready to go tonight in the big game against Spurs and then again on the final day against Leicester as he bids a probably farewell to the adoring Stamford Bridge faithful.