Rejuvenated Chelsea Face Injury Ravaged Newcastle At St.James Park
Chelsea Players return from the International break
Nkunku and Lavia Back In Training
Reece James is fit and ready to play
Pochettino gets Collwill and Ghusto boost
By Udo Anyanwu | Nov 23, 2023
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Chelsea return to League action this Saturday with a potential banana peel game away to injury-hit Newcastle United at St James Park
Chelsea are back! The excitement is buzzing again after the dramatic game against Manchester City. This weekend they play another potential blockbuster away at Newcastle, a team in the throes of a major injury crisis. Coach Eddie Howe has had a disastrous few weeks in terms of injuries. Now he must somehow stitch together a team to face Chelsea.
Before the break, Chelsea played a breathtaking 4-4 classic at Stamford Bridge against treble-winning defending champions Manchester City. Many of the pieces in Pochettino's puzzle are finally falling into place. Forward Raheem Sterling played like a man on fire for the full 90. But he wasn't allowed to steal the show as Cole Palmer, Conor Gallagher, and Reece James all put in 5-star performances.
Pochettino will have every cause to arrive at Newcastle with confidence. His player returned from International practically unscathed. Enzo Fernandez was world-class in Argentina's win away against Brazil. Malo Ghusto and Levi Colwill survive injury scares and are in training. Reece James was passed over by England and so is fully rested. It's unclear if Nicholas Jackson can return in time from duty with Senegal. Chris Nkunku and Romeo Lavia are yet to feature this season but are back in training.
Newcastle under coach Eddie Howe come off the back of 2 devastating losses to Borrusia Dortmund and Bournemouth. This is a team with an injury list that looks more like a shopping list. Raul Almiron, Isak, Target, Barnes, Burn, and Callum Wilson are all out with injuries. In their last outing against Bournemouth Newcastle was outplayed and overwhelmed in a 2-0 defeat. Goalkeeper Nick Pope kept the scorelines respectable with an excellent display.
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In these circumstances, Chelsea would be expected to put Newcastle to the sword. However, they have had a woeful record this season against teams that park the bus. It's hard to see Newcastle coming out with all guns blazing like City or Spurs. Coach Eddie Howe could be tempted to be more pragmatic especially as Newcastle host PSG in a must-win Champions League game on Tuesday. If that's the case this game could be another banana peel to trip up Pochettino's roaring young lions.
Chelsea is likely to line in Pochettino's favoured 4-3-3 formation. In defense, Axel Disasi should partner Thiago Silva unless Pochettino's decides to give Benoit Badiashile a run. Reece James and Cucurella are expected in full-back positions. The midfield picks itself with Caicedo, Enzo, and Conor Gallagher. Nicholas Jackson may be rested with Sterling, Mudryk, and Cole Palmer playing as false 9. It's a formula that worked to perfection in the past and hopeful it can do the magic against Newcastle on Saturday.
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