WATFORD, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 02: Christian Pulisic of Chelsea celebrates with teammate Cesar Azpilicueta after scoring his team's second goal during the Premier League match between Watford FC and Chelsea FC at Vicarage Road on November 02, 2019 in Watford, United Kingdom. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
Speaking after the match against Norwich City as quoted by Football.London, Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel has offered injury updates on Cesar Azpilicueta and Christian Pulisic.
Chelsea took on Norwich City in the Premier League last night and emerged victorious by a 3-1 scoreline, thanks to goals from Chalobah, Mount and Havertz. Azpilicueta started the game against the Canaries but had to be replaced at half-time while Christian Pulisic missed out on the trip to Carrow Road altogether.
The Spanish defender who has been on Chelsea’s books for more than a decade now has been an ever-present in the Blues defence this season while the American has seemingly finally put his injury troubles behind him and started gaining prominence in Tuchel’s team.
The victory could not have come at a better time for the Blues, with off-field issues surrounding the club. Long-time owner Roman Abramovich had his assets frozen by the UK Government yesterday, which in turn will affect Chelsea. Tuchel would have been proud of the fact that his team managed to isolate themselves from the outside noise and concentrate on the game.
When asked after the game for injury updates on his two star players, Tuchel clarified that both of them were down with illness and do not have serious problems.
“He did not feel well, Christian, in the morning when we wanted to leave. So we decided to leave him at home”
On why Azpilicueta had to be replaced at half-time, Tuchel added,
“Azpi did not feel well. A bit of a stomach problem so we decided to take him out”
Although from what Tuchel said, Azpilicueta is not expected to be out for too long, Chelsea may have some injury concerns at full back going into the clash against Newcastle on Sunday.
Ben Chilwell has been a long-time absentee for the Blues and is expected to be out for the rest of the season. Reece James who just returned from an injury has suffered another setback and is expected to be out for a while. Marcos Alonso recently contracted Covid and even if he returns in time for the clash against the Magpies, he may not have the required match fitness.
That leaves Tuchel with just Azpilicueta if fit and Saul as options to play against Newcastle. If the Chelsea captain doesn’t recover in time, the German manager may have to opt for a change in formation or risk Marcos Alonso or play someone else in that position.
It remains to be seen how Tuchel handles this full-back crisis he is facing but the German manager, as he has shown numerous times in the past, is very adept at handling such situations.
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