Spartak have a unique way of showing gratitude

Chelsea’s multi-million pound state-of-the-art training facility in Cobham is the envy of the Premier League. Once players obtain access to the opulent facility via finger print recognition technology, they may enjoy lush training pitches, artwork by prominent graffiti artist Temper and at the end of the day, they can grab a towel (not the pink one, that’s Lampsie’s) and relax in the sauna.

Ahead of Spartak Moscow’s clash with Tottenham tonight, Roman Abramovich has kindly offered use of the facility to the Russians. Striker Artur Maloyan, however, isn’t impressed with the two-bit operation the club are running in Surrey:

“At our grounds, they cook so much better,” he said. ” We saw Terry, Carvalho and Cole using the same canteen as us. Those guys must be pretty undemanding.

“The food they have is pretty frugal. And they sit on plastic chairs which are more suitable for outdoor BBQ parties, and even eat from disposable plates here.”

There are several reasons to doubt Maloyan’s account of Cobham: firstly, the Chinese Olympic football team praised the food when they stayed last year, and anyone who calls Ashley Cole “pretty undemanding” clearly doesn’t have a firm grasp on reality.

[The Telegraph]