Absent: Chelsea are without first-choice goalkeeper Robert Sanchez against Manchester City
Chelsea Football Newsletter
Managerless Chelsea have been hit by a fitness crisis for their match against Manchester City, with Robert Sanchez, Wesley Fofana and Marc Cucurella all sidelined.
The Blues have their under-21s head coach Calum McFarlane in charge for Sunday evening’s Premier League match at the Etihad Stadium after the departure of Enzo Maresca on New Year’s Day.
McFarlane taking charge of his very first senior match already made the game appear something of a mismatch ahead of kick-off, and to make matters worse, Chelsea now have absentees they had not initially bargained for.
Fofana was expected to start at centre-back but is unavailable after waking up on Sunday with a fever, while first-choice goalkeeper Sanchez misses the game due to a small muscle issue.
And left-back Cucurella is not in the squad after failing to recover in time from a hamstring injury which saw him ask to be substituted in the second half against Aston Villa on December 27.
That is on top of Chelsea being without Moises Caicedo, the team’s key midfielder, who serves a one-match suspension after picking up five yellow cards in the Premier League this season.
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While there is optimism that Sanchez can return against Fulham on Wednesday, the match against City now has added difficulty for Chelsea, who have won only two of their last nine games across all competitions.