Champions League holders Chelsea made a huge statement on Tuesday by thrashing Juventus 4-0 at Stamford Bridge, but the victory came at a cost as a couple of influential players limped off after suffering knocks.
N’Golo Kante was withdrawn shortly before half-time after appearing to twist his knee before Ben Chilwell had to be helped off the pitch by Chelsea’s physios after also hurting his knee.
After the game, Thomas Tuchel admitted that he was “worried” by the injuries ahead of Chelsea’s Premier League fixture against Manchester United on Sunday.
Fantasy Premier League managers will be equally concerned by Chilwell’s setback especially, as the left-back has been in sensational form of late. Only Mo Salah (with 68) has amassed more FPL points over the last six gameweeks than Chilwell’s 54.
Here is all the key team news ahead of this weekend’s FPL transfer deadline at 11am on Saturday.
Chelsea fear that Ben Chilwell (£6.0m) could have suffered anterior cruciate ligament damage to his knee during the midweek win over Juventus, which could rule him out for the remainder of the season. The England international was due to undergo a scan on Wednesday to determine the extent of the damage. If Chilwell is sidelined for the foreseeable future, Marcos Alonso (£5.6m) could re-emerge as a popular FPL asset.
N’Golo Kante (£4.9m) also suffered a knee injury, but Tuchel said “hopefully, it’s not too bad” during his post-match press conference on Tuesday. Timo Werner (£8.6m) made a goalscoring return to the team against Juve after a recent hamstring lay-off, while Romelu Lukaku (£11.5m) was an unused substitute in that game. Kai Havertz (£8.1m) will be assessed after tweaking his hamstring in the win over Leicester.
Manchester United will be without captain Harry Maguire (£5.4m) for their trip to Stamford Bridge after his red card against Watford last weekend. Raphael Varane (£5.5m) is also unavailable due to a hamstring injury, meaning Eric Bailly and Victor Lindelof are set to deputise. Paul Pogba (£7.4m) remains out with a hamstring injury, while Mason Greenwood (£7.4m) is also set to miss out after testing positive for Covid-19. Luke Shaw (£5.2m) will be assessed after suffering a blow to the head at Vicarage Road.
Jurgen Klopp admitted that Diogo Jota (£7.5m) got a “proper knock” during a collision with Aaron Ramsdale in Saturday’s 4-0 win against Arsenal, but did not provide an update on the forward in his midweek press conference. The Liverpool boss did reveal that Andy Robertson (£7.0m) is “ready to play” after missing that win due to a hamstring strain picked up on international duty with Scotland. Roberto Firmino (£8.8m) remains sidelined with a hamstring issue.
A depleted Leeds put up an impressive fight against Spurs on Sunday given they were without Raphinha (£6.7m), Patrick Bamford (£7.7m), Rodrigo (£6.3m), Robin Koch (£4.3m) and Luke Ayling (£4.3m) for the game. Promisingly, both Raphinha and Rodrigo were filmed in full training on Wednesday, while Bamford and Koch have also stepped their recovery by doing ball work on the pitch.
Tottenham could be without Cristian Romero (£4.9m) for some time after Antonio Conte said that the defender’s hamstring injury is “serious”. “We are waiting for another scan,” Conte said on Wednesday. “I think his injury is a bit serious and we have to wait. I don’t know now the time he needs to recover. It’s an injury that’s more serious than [Giovanni] Lo Celso and [Dane] Scarlett.”
Both James Tarkowski (£4.9m) and Ashley Westwood (£5.3m) are suspended for Burnley’s game against Spurs at Turf Moor on Sunday after each accumulating five yellow cards.
Kevin De Bruyne (£11.8m) will miss Sunday’s match against West Ham as he continues to isolate after testing positive for Covid-19. Jack Grealish (£7.7m) is a doubt after being unable to train this week, while Ferran Torres (£6.7m) is out until the new year with a fractured foot.
Everton are set to be without a number of first-team regulars for their game against Brentford. Richarlison (£7.4m) is suspended after accumulating five yellow cards, while Demarai Gray (£5.7m) is a major doubt after being forced off against Manchester City with an abductor injury. The pair join Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£8.0m), Abdoulaye Doucoure (£5.4m), Yerry Mina (£4.9m), Tom Davies (£4.9m), Andre Gomes (£4.9m) and Mason Holgate (£4.2m) on the sidelines.
Brentford have issues of their own to contend with. Key players David Raya (£4.5m), Kristoffer Ajer (£4.5m) and Josh Dasilva (£5.3m) are all confirmed absentees, while Yoane Wissa (£5.9m), Mathias Jorgensen (£4.5m) and Mathias Jensen (£4.9m) will all be assessed.
Leicester look set to be without Youri Tielemans (£6.4m) and Ricardo Pereira (£5.3m) until next month due to calf and hamstring injuries respectively. “Youri is still a little bit of time away, but progressing well,” Brendan Rodgers revealed on Wednesday.
Ismaila Sarr (£6.0m) will be assessed after suffering a knee injury in Watford’s 4-1 victory over Manchester United last weekend. Speaking after the game, Claudio Ranieri said: “I think [he’s OK]. I didn’t want to risk him.”
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