Chinned: Lights-out
for Didier as he is knock-out cold by Ruddy
Drogba drops, already out cold, after clashing with
Ruddy and is then carried off on a stretcher
Worrying moments: Ruddy calls on the medics after his
collision Drogba
Anxious Blues: Drogba receives treatment before being
taken to hospital
Chelsea
3-1 Norwich
Didier Drogba was rushed to
hospital on Saturday after an aerial clash with Norwich keeper
John Ruddy left him unconscious an hour into Chelsea's 3-1
victory.
Leaping for a cross into the Norwich penalty
area, both players had eyes only for the ball when Ruddy
inadvertently punched Drogba as the keeper tried to
clear.
The striker appeared to be unconscious as he
fell, crashing to the turf in front of the Matthew Harding Stand
and he did not move as ambulance staff and Chelsea's medical team
raced towards him, encouraged by Ruddy's urgent
beckoning.
'Didier is a little bit better and showing some
signs of recovery,' said manager Andres Villa-Boas immediately
after the game.
'I am grateful both to my players, the Norwich
players and the medical staff for reacting so quickly to a
potentially very dangerous situation. They arrived there in time to
bring Didier back to consciousness.
'He was unconscious for quite some time, a couple
of minutes, I think. I didn't see the incident up close, but it
looked nasty from the bench. It was natural, physical contact,
though, the sort that happens in a game, and we know that these
things can happen, so we must praise the response of everyone
involved.'
Drogba was taken to St Mary's Hospital in
Paddington where scans showed no signs of injury and he was later
allowed home at his own request.
Ruddy was not to blame but his eventful afternoon
also ended prematurely when he was sent off for a professional foul
on Ramires, conceding the penalty which saw Chelsea regain the
lead.
They went ahead through Jose Bosingwa, only to be
hauled back by Grant Holt's acrobatic strike.
After Frank Lampard regained the lead from the
spot, Juan Mata scored a debut goal in added time. Norwich boss
Paul Lambert was enraged by the 'disrespectful' attitude of
Chelsea's fitness coach Jose Mario Rocha when Ruddy was
dismissed.
Rocha ran into the technical area to demand that
referee Mike Jones show Ruddy a red card, leading to an ugly
clash.
'You'd better ask the guy with the stopwatch what
that was all about,' said Lambert.
'He came hurtling into my technical area, and
that's disrespectful. I don't know what he said, I don't speak
Portuguese, but if he understands Glaswegian then he'll know what I
said.'