The England international claims the Paris Saint-Germain marksman “likes the sound of his own voice” but says the Blues must pay close attention to him on Wednesday
Gary Cahill has warned Chelsea they must respect the threat posed by Zlatan Ibrahimovic when they face Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League on Wednesday.
The Sweden international, who opened the scoring in the French champions' 2-1 first-leg win over the Blues, returns to Stamford Bridge tomorrow for the first time since seeing red there almost a year ago.
Ibrahimovic was furious with the attitude of Chelsea's players in last season's tie after he was sent off for a foul on Oscar in the first half.
And although Ibrahimovic has stated he is not seeking revenge on his return to west London, Cahill says his side must be on their guard.
"He's a top player, one who can be very dangerous on his day," said the centre-back.
"For him, it was unfortunate the last time around but for his team it was positive because they went through. This tie is settled perfectly but he is very vocal on the pitch - he does like the sound of his own voice - but he deserves respect and he's one we have to look out for."
Cahill insists PSG, on the flip side, will need to be on their mettle if they're to keep out Willian, who has emerged as Chelsea's talisman this term.
"Willian has improved month after month, this season has been his strongest in a Chelsea shirt, he's been one of our outstanding performers this year," he continued. "I'm very excited for the fans to come and watch and for us to give him the ball and let him do his stuff.
"The PSG defenders will not relish playing against him and he's a very special player on his day."
One player who won't be able to affect the game is John Terry, who has been ruled out of the clash through injury.
Cahill says it is disappointing to see the Chelsea skipper ruled out and hopes the club are still in the Champions League by the time he returns to fitness.
"We feel a responsibility to go out and perform as well as we can. We know it'll be difficult but we have to try to achieve the most we can. We realise it's an important game but we should enjoy that.
"We are all motivated because we all know how important this game is tomorrow night. It's unfortunate John isn't fit for this game and it would be nice to go through and hopefully he'll be fit again soon."
- Goal