There is still time for Chelsea to head to the Spanish capital and face Real Madrid in the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals, but Graham Potter’s last appearance at a press conference has revealed which players could miss the European duel against the whites and which others will arrive on time.
Asked about the state of health of his players before the league match against Aston Villa, Graham Potter, coach of the Blueshas recognized that “Thiago (Silva) and (César) Azpilicueta are still out. Raheem (Sterling) is coming back. He will miss the game (against Aston Villa), but I think he has a better chance for Tuesday.”. And it is that, in a matter of 18 days, Chelsea will have to face six games. The first, tomorrow and, on Tuesday, against Liverpool.
Also ahead of the game against Unai Emery’s team, the English coach stated that “Wesley (Fofana) will miss the game (against Aston Villa), due to hamstring problems, but there is a chance for Tuesday with him. Christian Pulisic had a bad cold coming back from the national team, so he’s one we have to check.”
Although two other players Blues They returned with physical and health problems after the break, these seem to be resolved: “Kai (Havertz) had a fever, but he has already recovered and has trained for the last two days. Reece (James) too. He has trained the last two days with us, so if there is no reaction, he should be available.”. The English winger came to miss England’s second match against Ukraine.
That is why the big unknown for Chelsea’s next matches, not just the European duel against Real Madrid, continues to be that of N’Golo Kanté. In the press conference prior to the match against Aston Villa, Graham Potter reported that they must “manage that as the next stage for us, because (N’Golo Kanté) has been out for a long time. He must have minutes and accumulate them in the Premier League. He has been training well and has had some time behind closed doors, he is available in the squad and I am pretty sure he will be on the pitch tomorrow at some point.”.
One of the cases in which the coach stopped the most Blue it was the one at Mason Mount. After affirming that the English international, that he could not travel with the Three Lions after being summoned by Gareth Southgate, “He has trained and is available, probably not from the start but he is in the call”Graham Potter valued his absence during the last matches – he has not played since February 28 – and the latest rumors about his departure that place him in the orbit of Liverpool.
“It has been hard for him, because he has had some injuries and speculation off the field. He is a great professional and a fantastic guy. His behavior with me, with the team and with us has been absolutely excellent.. I think that is to his credit, because sometimes in your career things are difficult, they are not quite optimal as you would like them to be, and you have to act well and behave in a good way, and that is exactly what he has done Graham Potter stated.