Saturday 23 January 2016 00:54, UK
Guus Hiddink has joked Chelsea tampered with and hid Petr Cech's new gloves ahead of Sunday's clash with Arsenal following a delivery mix-up.
Cech's glove manufacturers adidas had mistakenly sent a new pair to Chelsea's Cobham base, south-west of London, rather than to Arsenal's training facilities at London Colney, north of the capital.
The goalkeeper, who switched allegiance from Stamford Bridge to the Emirates during pre-season in June, returned to his former club's training ground this week to collect the errant gloves in person.
And while there he had a conversation with Hiddink, who managed Cech during his first spell as Stamford Bridge interim boss in 2009.
"You found out," Hiddink laughingly told reporters at Cobham on Friday. "I was here. It was late in the afternoon, the day before yesterday [Wednesday], when Petr showed up here.
"It was nice. We had a chat here. Everyone, almost everyone, had gone. It was already late afternoon.
"He knew the gloves were here and we tried to hide them, which he did not accept. We also tried to make them a little bit slippery, but he discovered that also!
We tried to hide them, which he did not accept. We also tried to make them a little bit slippery, but he discovered that also.
"They were wrongly sent here, but we gave them back. It was nice. That's the story."
The unexpected encounter came just days before struggling champions Chelsea travel to leaders Arsenal in the Premier League on Sunday. The match is live on Sky Sports 1 from 3.30pm.
Cech, 33, won four Premier League titles and the Champions League during his 11 years at Chelsea, before joining Arsenal this season in a move that has given the north Londoners an extra dimension in defence.
The new gloves were made to mark the Premier League record for most clean sheets, which Cech set against Bournemouth last month when he passed David James's 169.
The goalkeeper is due to wear them at the weekend as the Gunners bid to reverse Chelsea's 2-0 win over them at Stamford Bridge in September.
The Blues have not lost to Arsenal in the league since 2011 and remain unbeaten since Hiddink took over in December.
But with four of those games being draws, Chelsea are just four points above the relegation zone with the Gunners enjoying a huge 19-point lead over their London rivals.
The Dutchman said his side need to turn their six-game unbeaten run under him into more wins.
"We had some half results," he added. "We had a result in the FA Cup. But the others were half results. We want full results. We can't be patient, saying we'll get better in four weeks.
"We have to perform now. We'd like a result at the Emirates. Everyone in this club has to be realistic about where we are in points, compared to the relegation zone and Europe. We are not panicking, though, and looking too far forward."
When Hiddink was last in charge at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea inflicted Arsenal's heaviest Premier League defeat at the Emirates with a 4-1 win in 2009.
