John Terry admits 'influencing' ref
Early dismissal of Swansea defender after Chelsea skipper's intervention draws veiled criticism as Ba again comes to Blues' rescue
Chelsea captain John Terry said he had spoken to referee Phil Dowd in the lead-up to the official's decision to send off Swansea's Chico Flores.
Swansea had to play most of the match a man down after Flores was dismissed in the 16th minute for two reckless tackles at the Liberty Stadium on Sunday.
But it wasn't until the 68th minute that Demba Ba scored the only goal of the match. Chelsea won 1-0 to stay second in the Premier League table, two points behind leaders Liverpool with four games to play.
It was a big decision to make and I thought he made the right one and credit goes to him for that
"I just said, 'It's a second yellow for me'," Terry recalled.
"He [Dowd] gave him one a couple of minutes before, on the halfway line, and that one just outside the box is probably even more a yellow than the other one," the former England centre back added.
"Fair play to Phil, the ref, it was a big decision to make and I thought he made the right one and credit goes to him for that."
However, Swansea caretaker head coach Garry Monk was rather less impressed with the conduct of Terry and several other Chelsea players, and indeed the Blues' management, in the lead-up to Dowd dismissing Spanish defender Flores for his second challenge on Andre Schuerrle.