The latest injury news as Chelsea head to Merseyside for an all-Premier League Carabao Cup fourth-round tie with Liverpool at Anfield tonight
Chelsea boss Xabi Alonso speaks to the media
Chelsea boss Xabi Alonso speaks to the media(Image: (Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images))
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Chelsea will be looking to return to winning ways tonight when they take on Liverpool in the Carabao Cup tonight. Xabi Alonso’s side were beaten 2-0 by Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday evening, a result which saw them drop to fifth in the league table.
And in a further blow for Alonso, his side will once again be without Joao Pedro for the game at Anfield. Pedro missed the game at Stamford Bridge on Saturday evening, and his boss confirmed on Tuesday: "He has an injury on his thigh and he’s going be out for a few weeks..
"Let's see how many. We don’t want to predict on that. But not ready for the next games. He’s a key player. We will miss him, but we have to be ready to deal with the injury, and be competitive and try and win with the players we have available. This is the situation."
Alonso will also be unable to call upon Cole Palmer , who was sent off against Roberto De Zerbi’s side after picking up two bookings.
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"We spoke," the Chelsea boss said. "He knows the mistake he made, things that you can avoid. I hope that it’s not going to be repeated, and he’s aware of that. He’s mature and it was a mistake."
Alonso, though, does have Danny Welbeck available for the trip to Merseyside as well as Emmanuel Emegha, with both players able to step in as direct replacements for Pedro.
But Emiliano Martinez , Pep Chavarria , Jamie Gittens and Reece James are also expected to miss the game against Andoni Iraola’s side.
While Liverpool boss Iraola will be without Victor Munoz and Dominik Szoboszlai for the game, he is ‘optimistic’ that Florian Wirtz can be involved.
"I don’t think I can help you a lot," the Reds boss said on Tuesday when asked for an update on his injured players.
Florian Wirtz of Liverpool warms up before the Premier League match against Manchester City
Florian Wirtz before Liverpool's defeat to Man City(Image: Photo by Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
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"We still have to wait, we train later. We want to [use] this last day. He was quite fine, Florian – I’m quite optimistic that he will be available.
"And with Dom and Victor, I’m not so sure. I don’t want to say no, but I think it’s going to be more difficult than Florian, yes."
Iraola, who will also be without Jeremie Frimpong , Giovanni Leoni , Hugo Ekitike and Conor Bradley for the game, also suggested he will make changes to his starting line-up.
He said: "There will definitely be changes. But we want to win the game, we want to be competitive.
"We need to see how the legs are. We are kind of, not just in the Carabao Cup, also in the Champions League we are trying to make some changes from game to game, because I think it’s almost mandatory.
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"We want to be in the next round. We’ve been unlucky in the draw, we are playing Chelsea. They have been unlucky also. But we want to earn the right to be in the draw again and that only happens if you win."
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