Levi Colwill will replace the injured Thiago Silva in the Chelsea starting lineup against Manchester City at the Etihad on Saturday.
Chelsea will look to build on the win over Crystal Palace when they lock horns with Manchester City at the Etihad on Saturday evening. And Mauricio Pochettino has greeted a mixed bag of updates on the team news front ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Thiago Silva is unavailable after picking up an injury in the previous game. The veteran defender has joined Carney Chukwuemeka, who has sustained an ankle issue. The duo accompanies Benoit Badiashile, Marc Cucurella, Wesley Fofana, Reece James, Lesley Ugochukwu, and Romeo Lavia on the sidelines.
But there is some good news, as Malo Gusto and Levi Colwill have shrugged off knocks to be available to take on Manchester City. Pochettino discussed the duo, Silva, and Chukwuemeka during his pre-match press conference. He also provided other fitness updates on Robert Sanchez, who has regained his fitness.
The Chelsea boss said, “It’s a minor injury for Thiago but I think he’s out for tomorrow and is not available. After this game we don’t know, we will need to assess him day by day. Carney suffered a twisted ankle two days ago and he’s out, but Levi and Malo are okay. They recovered well and they are available for tomorrow.”
“Robert is available too, which is good news. Always it’s good to recover a player that was playing a lot. For him to be available again is a good thing for the team.We will see if he plays tomorrow. It’s very good to have him back and you never know in football what can happen. It’s better to have all the players available as soon as possible and be ready to play if we decide to choose them.”
Sanchez will not return to the starting lineup straightaway, with Djordje Petrovic keeping his spot between the sticks. Chelsea will line up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him, with the backline featuring Malo Gusto, Levi Colwill, Axel Disasi, and Ben Chilwell.
As for the midfield unit, Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo will pair up in the double pivot. Conor Gallagher will reprise his usual advanced role. But the attack will see one change, with Christopher Nkunku returning to lead the line for Chelsea against Manchester City, with Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson completing the numbers in the final third.
Predicted Chelsea XI: Petrovic; Gusto, Disasi, Colwill, Chilwell; Fernandez, Caicedo; Palmer, Gallagher, Jackson; Nkunku
