"He can be involved; it's very good news" - Pochettino confirms Chelsea summer signing will be included in matchday squad to face Sheffield United
Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino has hinted that new summer signing Christopher Nkunku could feature in the Premier League clash against Sheffield United on Saturday (December 16).
Nkunku, who arrived from RB Leipzig in the summer, is yet to make his first-team debut for the Blues after injuring his knee in August. Before the 2-0 league defeat at Everton last weekend, Pochettino had said (via Football London):
"Still assessing day by day, see tomorrow. I don't believe that he will be involved but we need to assess day by day."
Fast forward a week, the boss has said that Nkunku has made heartening progress in his rehabilitation and could be in line for his much-awaited Blues debut.
“He can be involved," the Blues manager said (as per transfer guru Fabrizio Romano. "It's very good news. We need now to be calm and quiet. It's going to put all the pressure on him. He needs to evolve, know the Premier League”.
The Blues are down in 12th place in the Premier League after back-to-back away defeats, having garnered only 19 points in 16 games. They will fancy their chances of returning to winning ways against a Sheffield side who are bottom of the pile and have won just twice this campaign.
Chelsea team news ahead of Sheffield clash
While Christopher Nkunku could be available for the Sheffield game on Saturday, having returned to full training along with Malo Gusto, Chelsea are grappling with a long list of injuries.
Goalkeeper Robert Sanchez is under specialist assessment. Full-back Marc Cucurella is undergoing assessment for his foot and ankle issues. Captain Reece James is set for another spell on the sidelines after injuring his hamstring in the Everton game last week.
While midfielder Romeo Lavia has returned to partial training, Trevor Chalobah, Ben Chilwell, Carney Chukwuemeka, Wesley Fofana, Lesley Ugochukwu and Noni Madueke are in various stages of their respective rehabalitation programmes.