(Reuters) – According to manager Mauricio Pochettino, French forward Christopher Nkunku is nearing recovery from a knee injury that has kept him out of play since before the start of the season. However, he will not be part of Chelsea’s squad for their upcoming match against Newcastle United.
Nkunku, who joined from RB Leipzig in July, had to undergo surgery for a knee injury sustained in a preseason friendly. He has recently returned to training and was hoping to play after the international break.
Pochettino stated, “Last week, he took part in a few training sessions, still he’s not fully recovered to be part of the tactical sessions. Really bad luck to lose him for the beginning of the season. Step by step we will find the best way for him to fit in the team.”
Another player, Romeo Lavia, has also not had his debut for Chelsea since his signing. The Belgian defender is dealing with an ankle injury and, according to Pochettino, is slightly behind Nkunku in terms of recovery but is in good condition.
Chelsea had a tough start to the season, with only one win in their first six league games. However, they head into their match against Newcastle on Saturday following a 4-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur and a 4-4 draw with Manchester City.
Pochettino said, “We were not consistent in the first period of the competition. We talked today in our meeting to try to find why. We were very good against Arsenal, Liverpool and struggled against teams with less quality than us and play in a different way.”
“We need to be consistent in the way we think. It’s important to assess after a period, when you win the perception is different. Most important is we are more confident and tomorrow we need to confirm we are in a different way.”
Chelsea is currently in 10th place in the Premier League with 16 points and will face a Newcastle side that is four points ahead in seventh place. (Reporting by Trevor Stynes, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
