Chelsea summer signing Christopher Nkunku is yet to make a competitive appearance for the Blues, but Mauricio Pochettino has given a fresh update on the Frenchman’s condition.
With the Blues seemingly gaining some form recently, the manager will be hoping that his squad availability is almost maximum, as the Premier League heads into the hectic winter period.
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Chelsea injury news ahead of Newcastle clash
Christopher Nkunku
After completing a £52 million move to Chelsea in the summer, Nkunku was on fire in pre-season, netting three times in five matches.
However an injury suffered against Borussia Dortmund has left the forward on the sidelines ever since.
Nkunku has recovered well however, and has been spotted on the training pitches at Cobham, with a return not too far away.
Speaking on the issue in his pre-match press conference, Pochettino said: “No, it’s difficult to assess. They are in a good condition, Nkunku a little ahead of Lavia. Doing things with the group last week, still not full recovery.”
🔵 Pochettino: “Both Nkunku and Lavia are in good condition. Nkunku is a bit ahead Lavia”.
“He was doing things with the group but still not full recovery, we have to wait just bit more”. pic.twitter.com/TM4mQ8BWAP
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) November 24, 2023
Romeo Lavia
Another one of Chelsea’s summer signings yet to make their debut, Romeo Lavia is also edging closer to a return.
Lavia has been nursing an ankle issue since he arrived at Stamford Bridge and last month the Belgian was dealt a major setback on his road to recovery, which has further stunted the start of his Chelsea career.
As previously mentioned, Pochettino has placed Nkunku’s recovery ‘a little ahead’ of Lavia’s, but stated that both are in ‘a good condition’.
Trevoh Chalobah and Carney Chukwuemeka
The duo were both ruled out of action ahead of Chelsea’s 2-2 draw with Arsenal on October 21, and haven’t featured since.
The former has been spotted back at Cobham after being kept out by a thigh injury, whereas Chukwuemeka has struggled with a knee issue since the Blues 3-1 loss to West Ham earlier in the campaign.
The following injury update has been provided on Trevoh Chalobah and Carney Chukwuemeka. ⤵️
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) October 18, 2023
Ben Chilwell
Chilwell suffered a knock towards the end of Chelsea’s clash with Brighton in the Carabao Cup at the end of September.
Not much was thought at first, but the injury was revealed to be much more serious and the left-back has been out ever since.
A return is thought to be soon, with December the target period.
Wesley Fofana
The French centre-back was spotted on the training pitches at Cobham yesterday, a very positive sign for the 22-year-old, following his pre-season ACL injury.
Although things look promising, a return date is still unclear. In his pre-match press conference, Pochettino spoke on the situation: “Yes it was nice to see.
“For him it was a massive motivation to be there and for us also.”
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