Chelsea went into Friday's game against Brentford without some key players including Reece James and Joao Pedro
Xabi Alonso speaks during an interview
Chelsea boss Xabi Alonso has confirmed a new injury blow for Reece James
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Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso confirmed a fresh injury blow for Reece James as the Blues captain missed Friday's trip to Brentford with a hamstring injury.
James played the entirety of last weekend's 2-2 draw with Hull City but a new problem has emerged for the England international. However, he didn't come through the clash with the newly-promoted side unscathed, as he picked up a minor injury during the contest.
The Blues boss confirmed that monitoring the 26-year-old's fitness continued until the morning of the trip to the Bees. However, he didn't pass the late tests in order to be in contention for a place in the matchday squad.
Alonso said: "He's had a little injury in his hamstring. He tried and we waited until this morning. He tried to make it but he couldn't now we have enough time to prepare for the next one. He was just short of recovering."
Joao Pedro was another notable absentee as uncertainty surrounds the 24-year-old's immediate future, with Danny Welbeck replacing him.. Pedro has made a blistering start to the campaign with Saturday's goal and assist in the draw with the Tigers making it three strikes and as many assists in the opening four Premier League games.
The Chelsea boss added: "You have another front three with Danny and Pedro. I think we wanted to have a good enough squad to deal with injury, in this case Joao. Danny has connections and scored here last season - we are prepared for tonight.
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"We always try to assess the whole squad, what we have today, a tough game for sure. We need to deal with situations but always the most competitive one."
Concern remains surrounding Pedro after he pulled out of the Brazil squad for the forthcoming fixtures.
Friday's clash at the Gtech Community Stadium was the final match until October 10 for Chelsea when they face Bournemouth. The break comes at an awkward time for Alonso with the Blues making a positive start to the season under the former Bayer Leverkusen and Real Madrid boss.
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