Stoke City's Andy Wilkinson is hopeful he can shake off a knock to be fit for the Potters' FA Cup quarter-final tie at Liverpool.
Stoke full-back battled on during Chelsea defeat
Stoke City's Andy Wilkinson is hopeful he can shake off a knock to be fit for the Potters' FA Cup quarter-final tie at Liverpool next weekend.
The full-back sustained an ankle injury during the 1-0 loss against Chelsea, but was forced to play on as Tony Pulis had made all three substitutions following Ricardo Fuller's early dismissal.
He was in no mood to come off at Stamford Bridge and is no facing a fight to be ready for the cup trip to Anfield on Sunday.
"I got a bit of a knock right on the bone, so I just had to try to run it off," said Wilkinson in
The Sentinel.
"I hate coming off. I had to last time we played when I did my hamstring. It's the worst feeling ever."
Wilkinson's brave efforts were not enough as Didier Drogba's second-half strike consigned his side to a fifth defeat in their last seven Premier League outings.
Tough
The 27-year-old cited Fuller's early sending off for a stamp on Branislav Ivanovic as a key factor behind their loss.
He added: "We didn't start very well, but then it didn't help with Ric getting sent off. It was always going to be tough with ten men."
Despite the loss, Wilkinson was pleased with his team-mates' efforts, saying. "The lads showed great spirit and determination to try to get something out of the game, but unfortunately we couldn't do it.
"The spirit was unbelievable and, had a few things dropped for us, we could have gone away with one of the results of the season. It just wasn't meant to be though."
