Graham Potter has delivered a mixed update on the fitness of his Chelsea squad ahead of this weekend’s fixture with Aston Villa.
Chelsea are unbeaten in four games in all competitions and will be aiming to continue that record when an in-form Aston Villa side visit Stamford Bridge on Saturday evening.
The west Londoners are set to be without experienced defensive duo Thiago Silva and Cesar Azpilicueta however, while Raheem Sterling and Wesley Fofana have also been ruled out.
“Thiago Silva and Cesar Azpilicueta are still away and Raheem [Sterling] is coming back but not ready for tomorrow. He’s more likely to be ready for Tuesday,” Potter told his pre-match press conference.
“Mason Mount trained and is available but Wesley Fofana will miss the game because his hamstring is tight. Christian Pulisic had a heavy cold returning from international duty.
“Kai [Havertz] had a fever but he’s recovered now and Reece [James] has had the last two sessions with us so he should be available.”
Potter said that he used the international break ‘as positively’ as possible and was pleased to see N’Golo Kante step up his fitness with an appearance for the u21 side.
The France international has not featured in the Premier League since August, but was named on the bench for the draw with Everton before the break.
“You just have to take them for what they are and use them as positively as we can.,” Potter said on the international break.
“N’Golo [Kante] has been able to get some more game time and a handful of players had solo sessions. The rest of us were analysing and looking at how we can improve for this weekend.
“It’s going to be an exciting month, but our focus is to stay present for our next game against Villa. We want to respond to the game against Everton.”
