Thiago Silva and Axel Disasi are on the sidelines for the game between Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur at Stamford Bridge on Thursday.
Chelsea will be eager to return to winning ways when they welcome Tottenham Hotspur to Stamford Bridge on Thursday night. And Mauricio Pochettno has new injury concerns hampering his preparations ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Thiago Silva and Axel Disasi have picked up minor issues that have ruled him out of the midweek fixture. The duo has joined Reece James, Wesley Fofana, Levi Colwill, Malo Gusto, Romeo Lavia, Carney Chukwuemeka, Enzo Fernandez, Lesley Ugochukwu, and Christopher Nkunku on the sidelines.
There is some positive news, as Robert Sanchez has resumed partial training. But Thursday’s game has come too soon for the Spanish goalkeeper. Meanwhile, Pochettino spoke about Silva and Disasi during his pre-match press conference.
The Chelsea manager said, “It’s not good news because we cannot recover any players in the last week. Only we need to add two more players, Thiago and Disasi. They will not be available for tomorrow.”
Meanwhile, Pochettino had words of encouragement for Noni Madueke. He said, “He is doing well. He scored against Aston Villa, he is improving a lot without the ball. I think the challenge for him is to improve without the ball, to be more connected on the defensive side. He can have the profile and of course I hope that he can take advantage of the possibility to play more until the end of the season.”
Madueke will retain his spot on the right flank, with Mykhailo Mudryk continuing on the left wing. Nicolas Jackson will spearhead the Chelsea attack against Tottenham on Thursday, with Cole Palmer playing behind him.
As for the midfield unit, Fernandez’s absence means Conor Gallagher will line up alongside Moises Caicedo in the double pivot again. Meanwhile, Pochettino is grappling with a right-back crisis heading into the midweek game.
With James, Gusto, and Disasi unavailable, the Chelsea manager will likely install Alfie Gilchrist as the right-back. The youngster will join Trevoh Chalobah, Benoit Badiashile, and Marc Cucurella in the backline. Finally, there is no looking past Djordje Petrovic between the sticks.
Predicted Chelsea XI: Petrovic; Gilchrist, Chalobah, Badiashile, Cucurella; Caicedo, Gallagher; Madueke, Palmer, Mudryk; Jackson
