Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Thiago Silva will return when Chelsea and Newcastle United face off at St. James’ Park on Saturday.

Chelsea will hope to bounce back to winning ways and enter the World Cup break on a high when they lock horns with Newcastle United at St. James’ Park on Saturday evening. And Graham Potter does not have any new injury concerns hampering his preparations ahead of his side’s latest fixture.

Kepa Arrizabalaga, Wesley Fofana, Reece James, Ben Chilwell, N’Golo Kante, and Carney Chukwuemeka remain on the sidelines due to their respective injuries. Meanwhile, Jorginho is a doubt due to foot injury.

Potter spoke about Jorginho’s injury during his pre-match press conference, revealing that the Italian international trained on Friday. The Chelsea boss also provided updates on Kepa and James in his presser.

“Jorgi trained today, so providing there’s no reaction he should be in the squad [for Newcastle]. There is nothing else to report in terms of returnees. I have no idea [when Kepa will return], but he’s not training so it’s not possible.”

Newcastle United vs Chelsea Preview: Probable Lineups, Prediction, Tactics, Team News & Key Stats

“It’s a natural reaction, isn’t it? Reece thought he would be close, he did everything he could to give himself a chance but in the end fell a little bit short. I can understand the decision and understand Reece’s frustration and disappointment, and now we just to try to focus on the rehab and get them back as soon as we can.”

Kepa’s continued absence means Edouard Mendy will retain his spot between the sticks for Chelsea. The Blues should line up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of the Senegalese goalkeeper against Newcastle United.

Thiago Silva will likely replace Kalidou Koulibaly at the heart of the Chelsea defence, with Trevoh Chalobah being his partner. Marc Cucurella should move out to the left-back spot, with Cesar Azpilicueta likely featuring as the right-back.

Jorginho might not be fit enough to start. So Mateo Kovacic and Ruben Loftus-Cheek should form the double pivot in the middle of the park. The Chelsea vice-captain and Conor Gallagher will be options on the bench for Potter’s consideration.

Potter has all his offensive resources at his disposal this weekend. And he should revamp the attack against Newcastle, with Christian Pulisic, Hakim Ziyech, and Armando Broja dropping to the bench. So Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will start up front, with Mason Mount, Raheem Sterling, and Kai Havertz supporting him.

Predicted Chelsea XI: Mendy; Azpilicueta, Chalobah, Thiago Silva, Cucurella; Loftus-Cheek, Kovacic; Sterling, Havertz, Mount; Aubameyang

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

I agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.

Recommended

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.