"Very sad because we are going to lose a player" – Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino confirms star man is set to be out for 'few weeks'
Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino has revealed that Robert Sanchez will miss a number of weeks due to an injury ahead of his team's upcoming Premier League contest against Sheffield United.
Sanchez, who joined the Blues from Brighton & Hove Albion for around £25 million in the summer, picked up a knee injury past weekend. He was substituted off in the 84th minute of the west London club's 2-0 Premier League loss against Everton on Sunday (December 10).
During a pre-match press conference, Pochettino was queried to shed light on the 26-year-old goalkeeper's situation. He responded to reporters (h/t football.london):
"I think always when you suffer an injury and he was our No.1 goalkeeper so far, always a player we will miss. We have another goalkeeper who is working hard to be ready. Of course, very sad because we are going to lose a player, maybe for a few weeks."
Pochettino, who replaced Frank Lampard as the Blues' manager, said:
"We need to wait and see perfectly the situation and also with Reece [James] and Marc Cucurella. From the beginning we are being hit with different circumstances. We need to be strong because the competition doesn't stop."
Sanchez, who has kept five clean sheets in 19 matches across competitions so far this campaign, is set to be replaced by Djordje Petrovic between the sticks against Sheffield United. The 24-year-old Serb will be hoping to make an impression in his first start for his new club.
Chelsea backed to win in next league clash
In his column for the Metro, ex-Manchester United star Dimitar Berbatov predicted a 1-0 win for Chelsea in their home league encounter against Sheffield United this Saturday (December 16). He wrote:
"Chelsea are 12th in the table, what the f***? It's a game that they need to win. Against Sheffield United at home, if they don't win, then it can say everything we need to say about their season. They have the players to win of course but it's not working for them at the moment. They need to find a way to win no matter what."
Chelsea, who have won just nine of their 39 league games in 2023, are 12th in the 2023-24 Premier League standings with 19 points from 16 outings. They have won just once in their last five league games.
Sheffield United, on the other hand, are currently bottom of the table with just eight points from 16 matches. They have registered just one win in their last eight overall games against Mauricio Pochettino's side.