The highly anticipated debut of Christopher Nkunku is getting closer as the French star trained with the rest of the squad at Cobham on Wednesday ahead of the West London club’s trip to Newcastle on Saturday.

That is according to the Standard, who have reported what would be a major boost to Mauricio Pochettino as the forward is a player all Chelsea fans are eager to see in action.

Nkunku joined Chelsea over the summer as part of a £52m deal with RB Leipzig and being one of the best players in Europe the two years prior, Pochettino would have had the 26-year-old down as a key member of his squad.

However, Nkunku suffered meniscus damage in his left knee in Chelsea’s final pre-season fixture on a dreadful pitch in Chicago at Soldier Field, which caused him to miss the entire opening part of the campaign.

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The Blues have struggled in front of goal for most of this campaign but recent performances have been better for Pochettino’s men.

Nevertheless, the return of Nkunku will help in that regard massively, as the Frenchman posted incredible numbers at Leipzig.

It is uncertain if the forward will feature against Newcastle as the report states that the Chelsea star will be eased back into action after his three-month injury lay-off, but this is still news fans of the club will want to hear.

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Chelsea forward Christopher Nkunku is set to have a key role in the team once he returns from injury, according to French football expert Jonathan Johnson.

Speaking exclusively to CaughtOffside for his Daily Briefing column, Johnson explained what Chelsea fans can expect from Nkunku once he finally comes back into contention after such a lengthy spell on the sidelines for the Blues.

According to Johnson, Chelsea were eager to be quick with a deal for Nkunku last year, so he very much remains a key part of Mauricio Pochettino’s project, even if Nicolas Jackson and others are now starting to impress in this CFC side.

Nkunku, however, showed huge promise during his time at former club RB Leipzig, and one imagines he will surely have little trouble getting back to his very best in a Chelsea shirt, even if it might take a bit of time for him to get back to full fitness and sharpness.

Discussing Nkunku’s role at Chelsea, Johnson said: “Regardless of Chelsea’s upturn in form lately, Nkunku will be a starter for Mauricio Pochettino once he is fully fit. It might take some time for the France international to get back to his best, but he will be keen to make up for lost time and has his spot with Les Bleus to fight for as well.

“I suspect that he will have a fairly immediate impact in front of goal as Chelsea seek to make a push for a European qualification spot over the second half the season. The Blues need to be wary of recurring injury issues with their summer signing, but he undoubtedly has the quality to improve this team once he finally returns to action.

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“Of course, we’ve seen real improvement from Nicolas Jackson of late, so that might have led some to question if Nkunku would get straight back into the team, but it’s important to remember how eager Chelsea were to get this deal done, and wrapped up early last year, so I’m confident he remains a key part of Pochettino’s project.”

Chelsea are slowly but surely making progress under Pochettino after initially making a nightmare start to the season and not looking a great deal better than they did in the very worst days under Graham Potter and caretaker manager Frank Lampard last season.

Nkunku could help take Chelsea to even better heights if he can get firing quickly in English football.

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On Sunday, Manchester City is set to clash with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in what promises to be another exciting Premier League encounter. However, Mauricio Pochettino’s Chelsea will have to manage without six key first-team players.

Chelsea injury news

According to the club website, Trevoh Chalobah, Ben Chilwell, Carney Chukwuemeka, Wesley Fofana, Romeo Lavia, and Christopher Nkunku will be unavailable for the upcoming Premier League fixture. These absences are long-term, and Pochettino has not reported any new concerns.

Mauricio Pochettino on Manchester City test

Despite this, Chelsea’s recent 4-1 victory over Tottenham showcased their potential, even though it was aided by two red cards for Ange Postecoglou’s team. Pochettino remains confident in his side’s ability to compete with Manchester City as he claims that they are not to be considered underdogs.

Pochettino stated in his press conference:

“For me they are the best team, have the best coaching staff and the best coach/manager. We need to tell the truth – it is one of the best organisations in the world.

 

“We need to give credit to Manchester City, from the top to the bottom, they are doing it all really well. It is going to be a challenge and we want to compete. We know it is going to be tough. But we are going to try to compete at our best and our goal is to win the three points.

 

“Chelsea never have that feeling of being an underdog. The feeling is always ‘you are Chelsea’. It is impossible, the history is there. But Monday [against Tottenham] showed we have talent and character to compete and to fight with the best clubs in England.”

Manchester City injury news

England defender John Stones suffered a muscle injury during the 3-0 win over Young Boys, which is unfortunate given his recent return to the team after being sidelined since August. However Pep Guardiola has mentioned that the injury might not be as severe as initially feared, although he will be unavailable for the weekend.

On the other hand, Manuel Akanji had to be removed from the starting XI against Young Boys, but there’s positive news regarding the Swiss defender who will return to the squad to face Chelsea.

Meanwhile Kevin De Bruyne is still weeks away from returning to training, according to the club website.

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Chelsea have confirmed Christopher Nkunku is stepping up his recovery from injury.

The Blues, who provided an update on the attacking midfielder via their app, are expecting the Frenchman to return after the next international break.

Chelsea confirm Christopher Nkunku is upping his recovery. He’s back on the bike and is expected back after the international break. Mauricio Pochettino has previously said he’s making fast progress and termed a return to the squad against Newcastle on November 25 as a “maybe”.? pic.twitter.com/WXYpgXDfgD

— Ben Jacobs (@JacobsBen) November 8, 2023

The 25-year-old starred in Chelsea’s pre-season USA tour but picked up a knee injury against Borussia Dortmund in the final game.

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Ruled out for nearly four months the former RB Leipzig playmaker has so far spent the season on the sidelines but with his recovery now seeing him back in the gym, Nkunku could make a return before December’s fixtures.

Christopher Nkunku on Instagram:

"Getting closer… ?????"

? @ChelseaFC pic.twitter.com/htJOXQXEuE

— Absolute Chelsea (@AbsoluteChelsea) November 8, 2023

Nkunku was signed by US billionaire owner Todd Boehly in the summer for a reported £52 million fee (Sky Sports) but has yet to feature competitively.

However, with Mauricio Pochettino previously admitting the midfielder ‘may be’ able to play against Newcastle United on November 25th, there is hope the Frenchman’s long-awaited club debut isn’t too far off now.

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Chelsea manager, Mauricio Pochettino, could be forgiven for thinking it’s two steps forward after the Blues win against Tottenham Hotspur, and then one back because of their injury concerns.

The bigger clubs are seemingly able to cover the loss of their stars, and whilst Chelsea are steadily improving, they’re far from the finished article and need the players playing.

A decent showing against Pep Guardiola’s side this coming weekend would not only put the cat amongst the pigeons in terms of showing that Man City are beatable, but it would also strengthen Chelsea’s own aspirations as they look to climb the Premier League table.

They’ll have to try their luck without at least six of their players, however.

According to Premier Injuries, only Armando Broja appears likely to be able to make this weekend’s fixtures.

Definitely ruled out are Wesley Fofana, Ben Chilwell, Romeo Lavia, Christoper Nkunku, Trevoh Chalobah and Carney Chukwuemeka.

There’s still no date for a return for the latter two, whilst Nkunku will hope to be back in contention by the end of November.

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Lavia and Chilwell should be able to be considered for selection by mid-December whilst Fofana is out for the season.

How Pochettino manages to negotiate this next crucial period in the season is ultimately likely to dictate where Chelsea end up.

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talkSPORT pundit Darren Bent has spoken about Chelsea’s long injury list, and how once these players return they will improve.

Bent began by listing Wesley Fofana, Christopher Nkunku, Reece James, Ben Chilwell, Romeo Lavia, Armando Broja and Cole Palmer who are out through injury, or nursing injury issues and said how big this group of players are to the side.

Nkunku who was signed for big money to score goals, and the two fullbacks of Reece James and Ben Chilwell who are incredibly important for Chelsea, Bent believes these three players make a massive difference for the Blues.

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??????: "Look at their list of injuries!" ?

????: "Chillwell and Reece James are massive losses!" ?

??????: "The two full-backs and Nkunku make you go wow!" ?

Darren Bent explains why he believes #CFC will improve this season ? pic.twitter.com/mSt8iBBWf6

— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) October 20, 2023

Chelsea currently sit 11th in the Premier League with 11 points, winning three, drawing two and losing three in their opening eight fixtures. They face Arsenal at Stamford Bridge on Saturday in what will be their biggest test this season, facing the runners up from last season.

The Blues will be hoping that Reece James can play some part in the game after returning from his injury recently, whilst other longer term absentees such as Christopher Nkunku, Romeo Lavia and Wesley Fofana remain out for the foreseeable.

Chelsea will be looking to end Arsenal’s current unbeaten start to the campaign, which has them second place on 20 points, with six wins and two draws in their opening eight games. Chelsea haven’t beaten Arsenal since 2021, when they won 2-0 at the Emirates.

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Chelsea have been the one club above all others that have dominated the last few transfer windows.

Ever since Todd Boehly took over the club from Roman Abramovich, the American has poured an incredible amount of money into the playing side of the business.

Breaking the transfer record in the summer with a £115m purchase of Moises Caicedo from Brighton and Hove Albion, per The Guardian (subscription required), was perhaps only to be expected.

After all, the Blues seem to be just another pet project for the larger than life American who also owns the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Los Angeles Lakers, the Los Angeles Sparks, Cloud9, and DraftKings according to Eldridge, another company that he is co-founder, Chairman and CEO of.

Not only does he own those brands, but he’s also on the boards of the Lakers, Flexjet, PayActiv, CAIS, Chelsea, Cain International, Kennedy Wilson, and Vivid Seats.

Eldrige note other investments from Boehly include A24, Fulwell 73, and Penske Media (The Hollywood Reporter, Variety, Billboard, Rolling Stone, Vibe, Music Business Worldwide, dick clark productions, Life is Beautiful).

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In essence, if Boehly wants something, he normally gets it, and as ESPN report, the next investment on his January shopping list is Napoli hot-shot, Victor Osimhen.

The outlet note that the Partnopei, current holders of the Scudetto, are likely to demand in the region of £120m for the services of the player, though as we’ve already seen to date, that’s small change for Todd Boehly and if it puts his name up in lights again, it’s a price worth paying for the Blues owner.

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Mauricio Pochettino will almost certainly be keen not to make excuses for another disappointing Chelsea performance, this time at Bournemouth, however, with a full XI out injured at present, he could be forgiven for at least acknowledging that he can’t get any sort of stability at present for precisely that reason.

The Blues again looked out of ideas and lethargic for the most part at the Vitality Stadium, and any initial optimism that the west Londoners could do some damage in the Premier League this season has surely evaporated.

Perhaps supporters shouldn’t be too hasty in their assessments, however.

According to talkSPORT, the Stamford Bridge outfit currently have a full XI out of action that’s worth a conservative £370m combined.

Marcus Bettinelli, Trevoh Chalobah, Benoit Badiashile, Wesley Fofana, Reece James, Romeo Lavia, Moises Caicedo, Carney Chukwuemeka, Christopher Nkunku, Armando Broja and Noni Madueke are all sidelined.

Whilst a few of those named might not get straight into the starting XI, it’s a fair bet that more than half of them would do.

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Having both Romeo Lavia and Moises Caicedo in situ and working in tandem in the midfield would likely shore things up and allow the team to create more in an attacking sense.

Indeed, the sooner Chelsea can get a settled XI the better, because the longer their current malaise goes on the worse it could get for Pochettino thanks to Todd Boehly’s trigger finger.

The post Chelsea have an incredible £370m worth of talent sidelined with injuries at present appeared first on CaughtOffside.

London derbies are always special occasions for football fans as well as players, with the atmosphere generally taken up a notch and no quarter asked or given on the pitch.

Given the sheer amount of teams in the Premier League from the capital; Arsenal, Brentford, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Fulham, Tottenham and West Ham, not a week seems to go by nowadays without a derby taking place.

This Saturday sees Mauricio Pochettino’s new-look Chelsea side making their way across town to the London Stadium and a fixture against West Ham United.

The match could see David Moyes hand home debuts to both Edson Alvarez and James Ward-Prowse, in a match that isn’t too significant at this stage but will still be fiercely competitive.

The Hammers could also be boosted by the news that six Chelsea players have been ruled out of the fixture.

According to football.london, Trevoh Chalobah, Benoit Badiashile, Armando Broja, Wesley Fofana, Christopher Nkunku and Marcus Bettinelli will play no part in the match.

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Both teams drew their opening Premier League fixture of the 2023/24 season, though the Blues were unlucky not to get more out of their fixture with Liverpool.

West Ham started well but faded significantly at Bournemouth, and Moyes will surely be hoping that the same fate doesn’t befall his side this weekend.

The post West Ham boosted by Chelsea’s injury crisis ahead of London derby appeared first on CaughtOffside.

With a few days to go until the start of the new Premier League season, Chelsea’s transfer plans, whilst not exactly thrown into chaos, could change significantly over the next few weeks.

There’s still the small matter of trying to ease Romelu Lukaku out of the club, and there will perhaps be deals done for Hakim Ziyech and Callum Hudson-Odoi.

However, it’s the injury to Christopher Nkunku that’s likely to be keeping Mauricio Pochettino up at night.

The player has only recently signed for the Blues and it’s believed he’ll be out for around 16 weeks after undergoing surgery on a knee injury picked up on Chelsea’s tour of the United States.

‘Chelsea will clarify the situation of Christopher Nkunku. We know he had a knee injury during a friendly game in the United States, so we’ll wait for clarity about that,’ Sky Sports journalist, Fabrizio Romano, wrote in his exclusive CaughtOffside Substack.

‘Of course, the situation will be monitored because this could really change some of Chelsea’s plans this summer.’

Though it’s thought that Todd Boehly will make money available if needed, Nkunku’s injury is one that the club could’ve done without. Especially at this late stage.

Pochettino will have been working on team shape and dynamic throughout the pre-season set of games, and his new signings will have played the fullest part in his thinking.

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Now the Argentinian needs a rethink unless he’s able to find a like-for-like replacement that can slot into his side with ease.

There’s likely to be plenty more challenges ahead for the west Londoners, but after so much transfer upheaval, hitting the ground running at the start of the season was imperative.

Nkunku being injured is a setback from which they could take a few games to recover.

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