Chelsea could move controversial pre-match huddle

Chelsea began their huddle away at Aston Villa and have continued it for four matches Chelsea head coach Liam Rosenior says his players "don't want to antagonise and bring more noise on ourselves" by conducting their pre-match huddle in the centre circle. It follows the unusual scene before Saturday 1-0 Premier League defeat by Newcastle when referee Paul Tierney was standing over the ball before kick-off but did not move away as the Chelsea players gathered around him for captain Reece James delivered his team talk. Rosenior says a decision has not yet been made over where they will do the huddle for Tuesday's Champions League match against Paris St-Germain but it is expected they will move its positioning from the centre circle.

It is understood that the officials had warned Chelsea not to gather around the ball before kick-off because it risks a mass confrontation when the opponents are due to start the match. After the Newcastle match, Rosenior said Tierney should "focus on his job" and said he would be speaking to his bosses at PGMOL (Professional Game Match Officials Limited), insisting his players had "respected the ball". Speaking on Monday, Rosenior said discussion about the huddle had been "blown out of proportion" and was a "distraction for the media" "The lads always wanted to show unity and togetherness: the lads will continue to do that," he said before their Champions League last-16 match against Paris St-Germain on Tuesday.

"We don't want to antagonise and bring the noise on ourselves. We will make a decision on where we do that tomorrow. " Rosenior said he had not yet spoken to the PGMOL but he had a meeting in person scheduled with them this week.

"The point of what I was saying after the game, it wasn't about the huddle. It was about my perspective on certain decisions made in the game. It would be great to meet them and have an in-depth conversation with them," he added.