Thomas Tuchel: Chelsea could be without a few key players for the FA Cup clash against Middlesbrough
According to Football London, Thomas Tuchel could be without Andreas Christensen, Saul Niguez and Reece James among others for the FA Cup last eight tie against Championship side Middlesbrough.
The Blues have qualified to the quarterfinals of the Champions League and look to take on the Boros in the FA Cup this weekend. However, Tuchel has additions to his already long injury list as he tries to rotate and keep his players fit for the busy end of season schedule.
Andreas Christensen, who could be on his way out in the summer on a free transfer had to be taken off during the Blues match against Lille and it is expected that the Danish centre-back could be ruled out of the weekend’s tie owing to a muscle injury.
Saul Niguez, who missed the clash against the French champions took to Twitter to reveal that he had tested positive for Covid. The Spaniard seemed to just be settling into Tuchel’s team after a tough start to life in England and this blow means the midfielder could be out for at least the weekend’s tie in the FA Cup.
As Thomas Tuchel alluded to, both Reece James and Callum Hudson-Odoi are in a race against time to be a part of the squad for the weekend. The right-back returned to action after a long injury lay-off but suffered another setback while the young winger is suffering from an Achilles issue and faces a late fitness test. There is also a long-time absentee in Ben Chilwell is who is expected to be out of this season.
How does this affect Tuchel’s plans?
Tuchel has been plagued by injuries throughout this campaign and he has almost always found solutions to it. The German manager will have to be at his best again come the weekend when he puts out a team to play against the Boros.
With Christensen ruled out, Chelsea have one centre-back less but that should not be an issue considering that the Blues have enough options to play at the heart of the defence.
Saul might have expected to start in the game this weekend but his absence leaves Tuchel with one lesser option at both left wing-back and midfield. This leaves Marcos Alonso as the only available senior option on the left side of the defence.
With both Reece James and Callum Hudson Odoi expected to be out of the clash, Cesar Azpilicueta will have to fill in at right wing-back again.
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Tuchel has quite a few selection headaches but as he has done in the past, the Blues can trust him to come up with a solution.