LONDON (AFP) - Chelsea's Salomon Kalou revealed Monday that Arsenal midfielder Emmanuel Eboue had apologised to Blues captain John Terry for a tackle which threatens to keep the England centre-half on the sidelines during the busy Christmas and New Year period.

Terry sustained an ankle injury after being challenged by Eboue during Arsenal's 1-0 victory over London rivals Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium here on Sunday.

Kalou said he'd spoken with fellow Ivory Coast international Eboue after the match. "I was saying to Eboue that it was a red card because he did it on purpose - but he denied that.

"He said he tried to block the ball and it was not on purpose. He said sorry to John. He didn't mean to do it, but to apologise was a nice thing to do.

"John will be a big loss and is very important to the squad. We will miss him and it will be difficult to do it without him but we have the players to do that," Kalou added.

Chelsea manager Avram Grant said after the game he believed Terry had sustained ligament damage rather than a break although he would know more after the defender had undergone a scan on Monday.

Arsenal's win ensured they stay top of the Premier League by a point from Manchester United and left Chelsea in third place, six points off the lead.