Axel Disasi will return to the Chelsea starting lineup, while Reece James might feature against Brentford at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
Chelsea will look to extend the recent unbeaten run when they welcome Brentford to Stamford Bridge on Saturday afternoon. And Mauricio Pochettino has seen his squad’s injury woes reduce considerably ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Ben Chilwell (hamstring), Trevoh Chalobah (thigh), Wesley Fofana (knee), Romeo Lavia (ankle), Carney Chukwuemeka (knee), Christopher Nkunku (knee), and Armando Broja (knee) remain on the sidelines.
But Reece James and Nicolas Jackson are in line to feature for Chelsea against Brentford this weekend. The duo appeared off the bench against Arsenal and will hope to return to the starting lineup soon. But Pochettino ruled out a start for James during his pre-match press conference.
He said, “Reece is still not ready to start. He is doing well, has been training really well. He is really close but tomorrow he is going to be on the bench.” Meanwhile, Pochettino provided a fitness update on Nkunku.
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He said, “He is doing really really well; is working really hard. He is close and hopefully as soon as possible we can have him involved again. He is a really important player for us. Maybe after the international break [in November] he will be involved, maybe. It’s not sure.”
“He is a player that can provide goals and we have been missing goals. That is why we think he can be important for us – he has proved he can score goals in the Bundesliga. Of course, if you compare with different offensive players, maybe with eight or ten goals from Nkunku our situation is completely different because they are the goals we are missing to be in a different position.”
While Jackson will hope to start against Brentford, he will have to make do with a spot on the bench. Raheem Sterling will spearhead the Chelsea attack against Brentford, with Mykhailo Mudryk and Cole Palmer continuing on the flanks.
As for the midfield unit, there is no looking past Enzo Fernandez, Moises Caicedo, and Conor Gallagher. The trio will retain their spots in the middle of the park, considering they have been forging a solid partnership in the last few weeks.
The only change to the starting lineup will come in the backline, with the fit-again Axel Disasi ready to feature from the get-go. Disasi’s return will relegate Marc Cucurella to the bench, with Levi Colwill moving to the left-back spot. Disasi and Thiago Silva will form the central defensive unit, with Malo Gusto being the right-back. Finally, Robert Sanchez is an automatic pick between the sticks despite a sub-par showing against Arsenal.
Predicted Chelsea XI: Sanchez; Gusto, Disasi, Silva, Colwill; Fernandez, Caicedo, Gallagher; Palmer, Sterling, Mudryk
