The injury crisis continues at Chelsea FC this season. Left back Ben Chilwell, who already missed a lot of time this season due to a hamstring injury, will now be sidelined again with a knee injury. He’ll miss the upcoming clash versus Newcastle, and very likely much more, due to his having to now go see a knee specialist for diagnosis and treatment.
Said manager Mauricio Pochettino on Chilwell: “We need to wait until he sees a specialist. I hope it is not a big issue. At this moment, after eight, nine months at the club, I prefer to be cautious and wait.”
Chelsea FC vs Newcastle United FYIs
Kick: Mon. Mar. 11, 8pm, Stamford Bridge, London, UK
Starting XI Predictions: Newcastle Chelsea
Detailed Injury List: Newcastle Chelsea
Transatlantic Passage: How the Premier League Redefined Soccer in America: LINK
Premier League Position: Newcastle 8th, 40 points Chelsea 11th, 36 points
Premier League Form: Newcastle WLDWD Chelsea DDWLL
Google Result Probability: Newcastle 27% Draw 23% Chelsea 50%
Obviously, we don’t know any timeline for a Chilwell return until the results of any diagnostics are made public.
Also, Conor Gallagher is a doubt for the Monday Night Football affair due to his having contracted an unspecified virus. However, he missed training on Thursday.
“We will see if tomorrow or Saturday he (Gallagher) has the possibility to train, but the problem always with this situation is you lose weight and energy,” said Pochettino. “You need time to recover and see if it can be possible to be available and at which level he can be available — to maybe play (from the start) or just a few minutes. We need to assess him over the next few days.”
Elsewhere there is another fresh injury concern, and it relates to another English defender, in Levi Colwill. He suffered a toe injury in the London derby with Brentford, and he’ll now head to the sidelines.
Meanwhile the likes of Benoit Badiashile, Wesley Fofana, Reece James, Romeo Lavia, Christopher Nkunku, and Lesley Ugochukwu remain out as long-term injury absentees. However, there is some good news as Carney Chukwuemeka has returned to training, and could thus be in contention to feature on Monday.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to Ravens Wire, part of the USA Today SMG’s NFL Wire Network. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune and the Washington Times. You can follow him on Twitter.