Pioneering Surgeon Holds Key to Terry's Return

John Terry's hopes of rushing to Chelsea's aid may depend on an innovative surgeon. It is believed that the centre-half will be assessed today by Jean Destandau in a Bordeaux clinic. There is an increasing likelihood that Terry will undergo a back operation, particularly since the club feel that a rapid recovery is possible. The captain of Chelsea and England could be one of many people to benefit from the pioneering efforts of Destandau.

He has carried out more than 5,000 operations of this nature since 1994. The "Destandau technique" employs laser-assisted keyhole surgery so that only a small incision is needed. The disc that is troubling Terry would then be shaved. There is anecdotal evidence of remarkable results. One individual who was unable to walk in the morning could do so on the evening following the operation and was capable of running three days later.

He, however, was not a professional athlete subject to the demands sure to be placed on Terry when he re-enters the line-up aiming to stabilise Chelsea's attempt to retain the Premiership title that wobbled with a 2-2 draw against Reading on Boxing Day. Dr Sanjeev Bhandari, who is attached to a medical college in Solapur, India, produced a paper on his experience with the Destandau technique and observed that, whereas those in sedentary occupations could resume work in two to three weeks, it took twice as long for those performing "heavy manual labour".

While Terry would benefit from the treatment available under the supervision of Chelsea's French rehab coach, Thierry Laurent, it is likely that the manager, Jose Mourinho, will be disappointed in his hope that the defender could be ready to play in a fortnight or so. Should surgery be advised, Terry may be unavailable for the whole of January and perhaps longer. England should doubt his availability for the friendly with Spain on February 7.

Without him Chelsea have conceded six goals in three Premiership fixtures. While the side could concede twice and still beat Everton and Wigan, they could not continue that trend against Reading. There was all the more reason, therefore, to brood on the way in which Leroy Lita found space behind the makeshift centre-back Paulo Ferreira to head in the first of the equalisers for Steve Coppell's team.

Mourinho has only three experienced centre-halves on his books and Khalid Boulahrouz, whose unsatisfactory form denied him even a place on the bench against Reading, is suspended for Saturday's home fixture with Fulham. Though the manager has not promised signings, there is an obvious case for re-entering the transfer market next month.