Chelsea have suffered a triple setback as it’s claimed Antonio Rudiger, Pedro and Ruben Loftus-Cheek will miss the League Cup clash with Liverpool on Wednesday.
The Blues will open their cup run against the Reds at Anfield, with Maurizio Sarri likely to be keen on enjoying a decent crack at the competition in his first season in charge in England.
However, their hopes of advancing past Jurgen Klopp’s side have taken a blow, as per freelance injury analyst Ben Dinnery in his tweet below.
It’s suggested that Antonio Rudiger and Pedro will miss out against the Reds in midweek, with the former picking up his groin problem in the goalless draw with West Ham United at the weekend, while Pedro missed the game entirely due to a shoulder problem.
Further, it’s added that Ruben Loftus-Cheek is also potentially out after suffering a setback in training, and if true, that will be a major disappointment for the England international as this game could have been an ideal opportunity for him to make his case to feature more regularly.
Instead, he seemingly faces a fitness race now but is touted to be absent, while Sarri will surely be hoping that the trio can at least recover in time for when the Blues take on Liverpool again on Saturday evening in their Premier League encounter.
Having dropped their first points of the campaign last weekend, Chelsea will hope to bounce back and avoid allowing their rivals from opening up a gap at the top of the standings. In turn, given the influence that Rudiger and Pedro have had so far this season in particular, Sarri will be desperate to see them return in time for that one at least.
Rudiger [groin] and Pedro [shoulder] will miss the @Carabao_Cup clash with Liverpool on Wednesday. Fabregas is expected to feature following mins vs POAK in the Europa League but RLC is unlikely to be considered following a setback in training. #CFC
— Ben Dinnery (@BenDinnery) September 25, 2018