Chelsea head coach Liam Rosenior has shared his side’s injury news ahead of Saturday’s Premier League trip to Wolves.
The Blues travel to Molineux to face the league’s worst team, looking to respond after their midweek EFL Cup semi-final loss to Arsenal.
However, they have been dealt a major setback with winger Jamie Gittens set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines. The 21-year-old was handed his first start under Rosenior in last weekend’s dramatic 3-2 win over West Ham United, but was forced off after just 26 minutes with an injury.
Gittens missed Tuesday’s defeat to Arsenal, and Rosenior has now confirmed that the winger will be unavailable for an extended period.
“Jamie, he’s looking a little bit more long-term,” Rosenior said during Thursday’s pre-match press conference, in quotes revealed by Football London.
“It’s a real shame for him. He’s got a tear in his hamstring, which is a real shame for him. I have not worked with him for too long.
“Obviously, I know about his career and what an outstanding player he is. Yeah, so that’s going to be a big miss for us.”
Chelsea are also monitoring the fitness of captain Reece James and winger Pedro Neto. Both players missed the trip to North London after failing late fitness tests, with the club opting not to risk them.
James has missed just a single league match this season, when he was left on the bench in a 3-1 defeat to Leeds United last December, while Neto has not missed a single league game, underlining how important both players are to the squad.
“Don’t know yet. Had training today, which was a recovery day for the lads who played a really tough physical game on Tuesday.
“We’ll check with them tomorrow, and then we’ll make a decision then”, the Chelsea boss added.
Despite the injury concerns, Chelsea are favourites heading into the weekend’s clash against Wolves, who have struggled badly this season and have only won once so far in the league. The Blues have won all three of their league matches under Rosenior and will be confident of extending that run.
