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After winning the UEFA Champions League in 2020/21, Chelsea has been on fire since Thomas Tuchel took over from Frank Lampard. However, their winning streak ended when they lost 3-2 to West Ham.
This loss comes amidst an injury crisis that sees their key players missing vital games. Thankfully, when they met with Leeds, they could turn the tables and win. Unfortunately, dropping the ball and suffering so many draws and losses have pushed them back down to 3rd on the table.
The question on every Chelsea fan’s lips now is, “How is Tuchel dealing with this injury crisis?” – if he can’t turn it around, the formidable axe is a viable option. Throughout this article, we look at the players Tuchel has missed over the last couple of weeks and those expected to return shortly.
Jorginho
Joginho was reportedly overworked and suffered back injuries as a result. Unfortunately, this meant that he missed out on a League match against Petersburg. Luckily, after resting up for a week, he was able to return to play for Chelsea’s nail-biting game against Leeds, where he scored the winning goal in extra time. If you want to take a bet on Chelsea players getting injured, then now is your time to shine – see these Champions League tips by Squawka’s experts for further information.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek
Unfortunately, Ruben Loftus-Cheek has had a terrible time with injuries this season. After returning to the Chelsea lineup, he received an injury during the warmup phase for their game against Petersburg. This had a knock-on effect for the game and left Chelsea with a dismal draw that saw them become the runners-up of Group H.
Further to Loftus-Cheek being out of options, choices were slim at Chelsea with Joginho out of action with his back, Kovacic down with Covid-19, and Kante sidelined with his knee. This left Reece James, who usually plays right-back, to pick up slack in midfield.
Trevoh Chalobah
Youngster Trevoh Chalobah picked up a harrowing hamstring injury during a game against Watford on 1st December 2021. During the second half of the match, the defender was switched up into midfield. However, before long, he suffered an injury that saw him unable to continue. Fortunately, The Blues went on to scrape a win with a 2-1 win. Considering how lucky the Watford underdogs have been this season, this was a great result.
N’Golo Kante
N’Golo Kante’s injury brought the number of midfielders out of action to four after he suffered a knee injury in a clash against Juventus. The state of injury left Kante on rest for several weeks of games.
Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images
Fortunately, despite holding a position on the bench, the midfielder returned to the team for Chelsea’s game against Everton. Tuchel is rightly concerned about the injury crisis in midfield and is hesitant to return players who aren’t at their best. Thankfully, the star returned to the starting lineup for the match against Wolverhampton and was one of the few positives of the game.
Mateo Kovacic
Kovacic had an unfortunate run-in with injuries and was all set to return before having a positive Covid-19 test. Thankfully, other than the positive test, he was in fighting shape and has since returned to the field to do what he does best.
Ben Chilwell
Unfortunately, Ben Chilwell is out for the long run after sustaining a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in Chelsea’s 4-0 win over Juventus. Initially, it was thought that surgery might need to happen. However, since then, the injury had begun to heal on its own, and he was returned to light exercise. He has now had surgery however, and will miss the rest of the season.
Reece James
James went off injured in last night’s game against Brighton, and while the full extent of the injury isn’t known, he might well miss the rest of this season too.
Current State of Play
Despite suffering an extensive injury crisis in midfield, all but one of Chelsea’s stars have returned to the team, if only on the bench. Chilwell is the last remaining player down for The Blues. In the match against Wolves, they only managed to score a draw in a bid to beat down current table leaders Man City.
Tuchel’s team has faced tough times over the last month, and they slipped into 3rd place as a result. Hopefully, Chelsea can pick up the pieces and keep hold of their title.
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