Spanish press claim Gary Cahill did not play for Chelsea against Barcelona because of the news of Ryan Mason’s retirement from football.
Chelsea captain Gary Cahill was named on the bench as they drew 1-1 with Barcelona in the first-leg of their Champions League last-16 clash.
Cesar Azpilicueta, Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger started as the three central defenders for the Blues, with Christensen directly at fault for Lionel Messi’s equaliser at Stamford Bridge.
It was assumed that Cahill not being included in the starting XI was a tactical decision by manager Antonio Conte, but Spanish publication Cadena reports there was a different reason behind it.
According to them, the England international did not feature against Barca because he was “too affected” by the news that Ryan Mason had retired from football.
Mason suffered a fractured skull in January 2017 after a clash of heads with Cahill during a Premier League match between Chelsea and Hull City and the 26-year-old called an end to his playing days earlier this month on medical advice.
The centre-back was quick to respond on Twitter, writing: “Devastated to hear today’s news from Ryan. Competing for a corner is something we’ve done thousands of times and to see those consequences for a top professional like Ryan is heartbreaking. Sending all my love to him and his family, and wishing him the best for the future.”
Cahill did play in the next fixture immediately after Mason’s news, an FA Cup game with the midfielder’s former team Hull, but it seems the 32-year-old was not in the right frame of mind to take on Barcelona.
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