Chelsea coach Jose Mourinho has said keeper Petr Cech was lucky
to be alive after being knocked out after only 20 seconds of their
1-0 win at Reading.
The Czech international was hospitalised with a head injury after
being caught by Reading's Stephen Hunt.
Cech's replacement Carlo Cudicini was knocked unconscious late on
but was later discharged from hospital.
Mourinho said: "The Cech one, the challenge is a disgrace. He is
lucky to still be alive." "I have to wait and see what the Football
Association will do about it and I'm also waiting to hear what the
experts think of both incidents.
Hunt, whose boot caught Cech on the head when he went to collect
the ball, later insisted he had simply tried to win
possession.
He told the club's website: "I was 100% intent on winning the ball.
I hope Petr Cech is not too badly hurt and hope he makes a full
recovery as soon as possible."
Cudicini came on for Cech but he failed to finish the game after a
collision with Ibrahima Sonko which Mourinho accepted was an
unfortunate incident.
"Carlo I think was knocked out as a consequence of the way he hit
the ground, but a knee coming at Petr like that, at such speed -
the boy was even laughing afterwards.
"We are very concerned," added Chelsea skipper John Terry. "They
both got knocked out and are fully concussed but we hope they are
OK."
Reading boss Steve Coppell said he was confident neither Hunt nor
Sonko were deliberately trying to hurt the Chelsea keepers.
"Steve wanted to put Petr under pressure but there's no way he'd
want to make contact, I know what he's like," said Coppell.