LONDON – Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino said on March 28 he was surprised Ben Chilwell started two games for England during the international break, after the defender returned only recently from a knee injury.
Chilwell last started for Chelsea on March 2 against Brentford and has played just a few minutes for the London club since, as a late substitute in the FA Cup against Leicester City.
Nevertheless, the 27-year-old featured for the whole of England’s 2-2 draw with Belgium at Wembley on March 26, three days after spending 67 minutes in the 1-0 defeat by Brazil.
Chelsea have nine players ruled out of their English Premier League match with Burnley at Stamford Bridge on March 30, including forward Christopher Nkunku and captain Reece James. Several others will be assessed following international duty, including Chilwell – who suffered a blow to his knee against Belgium.
“He didn’t play after Brentford, then he played only a few minutes against Leicester,” said Pochettino. “(Then) he started two games (for England).
“It’s a surprise for us. It’s bad luck because he got a dead leg in the last moment against Belgium. Now we need to assess if he can be available.”
Enzo Fernandez, who played twice for Argentina in the United States during the break, will also have his fitness monitored.
Chelsea confirmed earlier this week that Romeo Lavia would be out for the rest of the season.
The 20-year-old midfielder, who joined from Southampton in pre-season for an initial £53 million (S$90.2 million), has managed just 32 minutes of first-team action following ankle and thigh problems.
“He played only 30 minutes, for a new player at the club,” said Pochettino. “When we signed him, he arrived with problems. He couldn’t train with us for the first months.
“Then when he was ready, he suffered a problem in his feet. He recovered, he played 30 minutes then got injured in December.
“Then he didn’t have the possibility to train. It’s really sad news.”
But leading scorer Cole Palmer could face Burnley, with the 21-year-old having not featured in either of England’s recent games.
“I talked with him,” said Pochettino. “He’s a little bit disappointed because he couldn’t play with the national team.
“The first game he had a small problem,” the Argentinian added. “He thought maybe he’d play the second game.
“Now he’s OK, training well. The plan is he will be available for Saturday.”
Chelsea are 11th in the table, with Burnley in the relegation zone.
Burnley manager Vincent Kompany said his 19th-placed side have nine more cup finals in their bid to avoid the drop.
He said: “It is of that (cup final) importance, but I have to say for us the feeling has been like this already for a while.
“The Chelsea game you’re playing against a top team, but it’s not a luxury game for us. They’re all important games in terms of getting points.”
Burnley are missing the injured Aaron Ramsey, Nathan Redmond, Luca Koleosho and David Datro Fofana, while Jordan Beyer and Ameen Al-Dakhil are doubts. AFP, REUTERS
