:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/65481133/1161053449.jpg.0.jpg)
It's no secret that Chelsea players have been struggling with injuries this season. Matters were made worse when four more of our players, namely Reece James, Mateo Kovačić, N’Golo Kanté and Andreas Christensen, all got injured last week.
Unfortunately, there is not a lot of good news on that front as according to The Athletic’s Simon Johnson, N’Golo Kanté and Andreas Christensen most likely will not feature in the upcoming game against Newcastle and maybe even Ajax. Considering how our porous our defence has been, N’Golo Kanté being unavailable, especially, is a huge blow.
#Christensen has had a scan on a hamstring injury and is unlikely to feature. #Kante is doubtful too - has minor groin problem. #Kovacic suffered minor leg injury playing for Croatia but hope is he will be okay. #Emerson set to return for #cfc against Ajax next week.
— Simon Johnson (@SJohnsonSport) October 16, 2019
While Newcastle should be a win on paper, the midweek fixture against Ajax is a real concern. Chelsea lie third in the Champions League group while Ajax are the group leaders who have won both of their games so far convincingly, beating Valencia and Lille 3-0 each.
It's not all bad as Emerson will mostly likely be back in action against Ajax. The left wing-back has been out of commission since suffering a hamstring injury in the 2-1 loss to Liverpool back in September.
Similarly, Mateo Kovačić should be back sooner rather than later as well. Kovačić suffered an impact injury in the Croatia's 1-1 draw against Wales and thankfully, it was only a minor injury.
It'll certainly be good to see Kovačić and Emerson be back but it would be amazing if the rest of our squad could just get fit, especially N’Golo Kanté and Rudiger. They have barely had the opportunity to feature under Lampard and they're both the best players in this club at their respective positions. Would sure be nice to see Lampard’s Chelsea play at full strength at some point.