Three Chelsea players to miss Arsenal clash: Headache for Frank?
Chelsea picked up a 3-0 win over West Ham United in midweek and next up in the Premier League they take on Arsenal on Boxing Day.
The Blues are just one point off the top-four meaning a win against their London rivals could see them move closer to the top of the table before they enter the new year.
But going into this match, Chelsea have a number of injury concerns to deal with and the manager has revealed that the trio of Reece James, Ben Chilwell and Hakim Ziyech will not be available for selection.
‘They[Reece James & Chilwell] are both doubtful,’ reported Lampard, as per the club’s official website.
‘I can’t give you an answer at the moment. I’m not sure if they will be fit for either game. Hakim Ziyech won’t be fit for Arsenal.
‘He had an injury at the start of the season and he’s just got another muscle injury. You have to wait for it to recover.
‘It’s not a long-term concern, we hope to have him back within the next week or so, and hopefully offering what he was before.’
This is a bit of an issue for the Chelsea boss since all these players have been consistent performers for the club ever since the start of the season.
The manager does have replacements in each department with Azpilicueta coming in at right-back, Emerson at left-back and Christian Pulisic playing in place of Ziyech on the right flank.
All these replacements are good enough to play for Chelsea’s starting XI on their given day but with Arsenal eager to get back to winning ways, there’s a big chance Arteta will ask his players to target the defensive line on Saturday. The injuries also mean that unwillingly the Chelsea boss will get a chance to rotate his first-team squad.