Terry to talk to unhappy Chelsea stars

Chelsea captain John Terry has reminded his team-mates it is good to talk after headline-grabbing moans by Ricardo Carvalho and Arjen Robben.

Both players have complained publicly about the amount of playing time they are getting with Carvalho especially bitter after failing to start the first league game of the season.

The Portuguese defender was given a dressing down by manager Jose Mourinho but Terry has moved to play down talk of rebellion.

“I will speak to the players anyway and ask what is wrong,” said Terry.

“A lot of the time the lads will come to me and ask what the manager is thinking. Just that little bit of communication between us all and getting things out in the open is good.

“It’s only good for a team when a player gets it off his chest. It has been taken out of hand over the last few days with Riccy’s and Robbie’s comments.

“If they are not getting picked and they are happy about not getting picked then we have problems.”

Terry cited Joe Cole as a good example of the way to respond to criticism.

Last season, the England midfielder scored the winner against Liverpool only to be hammered by Mourinho for being too cavalier in possession.

Terry said: “He took it on the chin and listened to what the manager said to him. If the manager has an opinion about something and says you need to defend more and forget the attacking side, you are playing first of all for the team.

“That’s what Coley did. He had a look at himself and improved as a player and now he has his England place as well.”