Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech insists he will continue playing with a broken finger ahead of the Europa League Round of 32 first leg on Thursday.
The Czech Republic international sustained a broken little finger in last weekend's loss to Newcastle United but managed to get through the 4-1 win over Wigan Athletic on Saturday and is now looking forward to taking in his former club in Europe this week.
"That I would play (against Wigan) was decided definitely on Friday after the training session," he said on his own official website.
"I coped normally but felt quite a lot of pain in it. The doctors left the final decision to me. I had a special splinter and bandage for this match. They could not deaden the pain because I need to feel the finger while goalkeeping."
Cech added: "Naturally, it was painful as it always is if you have something broken. But I could play with it. The important thing is to endure the pain.
"There were quite a lot of shots but none of them hit me directly in the finger. When I survived this, then I will certainly be playing against Sparta on Thursday, unless something unexpected happens by then."
