Chelsea manager Graham Potter has recently updated on injuries to Marc Cucurella and Kalidou Koulibaly.
Following the arrival of Graham Potter, Chelsea have turned their season upside down. The Blues are currently fifth in the English Premier League table with twenty points from eleven games.
Meanwhile, in the Champions League, they are top of Group E with seven points from four games. Chelsea remain unbeaten under the former Brighton manager.
They will now face RB Salzburg in their next match. Winning against Salzburg will secure their place in the round of 16. In the first leg, Chelsea drew 1-1 with the Austrian team at home. This was Potter’s first match in charge.
Chelsea manager confirms Koulibaly’s unavailability
Senegalese defender Kalidou Koulibaly missed the last match against Manchester United due to injury. And now, ahead of RB Salzburg’s all-important tie, Chelsea manager Graham Potter has confirmed that the defender will not play in the Champions League match.
Speaking at the press conference, the England manager said: “He’s not too serious, but this game was too early for him. We hope to have him on the pitch on Wednesday or Thursday, but he is not available for tomorrow.”
Since joining Chelsea earlier this season, Kalidou Koulibaly has been one of Chelsea’s best players thus far. The Senegalese defender has been solid defensively and is one of the first names in the Chelsea line-up. His unavailability is certainly a major setback for the English Premier League giants.
For his part, Marc Cucurella was taken off in the 36th minute of the last match against Manchester United. So, at that time, it was thought that the Spaniard had caught some kind of injury.
While he dismissed any injury concerns, Potter explained that it was a tactical decision on his part to leave Cucurella out. Chelsea was actually being dominated by the Red Devils. So, to have more composure in midfield, Potter had to sacrifice the defender.
After joining Chelsea at the start of the season, Cucurella has yet to bring the consistency he showed at Brighton. Potter, however, has backed the Spaniard and believes he will soon be back at his best.
“Sometimes when you’re swinging sticks it’s going really well and sometimes it can be an up and down period. Marc has a bit of ups and downs, but he is a great player and he will show the quality of him,” said Graham Potter.
Chelsea are already having a lot of injury problems defensively. Wesley Fofana and Reece James have been sidelined with serious injuries. So Cucurella’s return is great news for Chelsea fans.
