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Christian Pulisic is edging closer to a return to action for Chelsea after staying in the sidelines for two months due to injury.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Chelsea manager Frank Lampard revealed that both Pulisic and Ruben Loftus-Cheek had been involved in an in-house match, but neither player was fit for a competitive game with the senior team. Lampard said,
“It is great seeing Christian (Pulisic) get some minutes. He lacks match fitness but this is the first time the injury is letting him get on the pitch for a relatively competitive game, which is a huge step forward.”
The American picked up a muscle injury during training and has not featured for the Blues since January.
His return comes as good news for the Stamford Bridge faithful who are currently missing the services of several other first team players, including Willian, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Mateo Kovacic, N’Golo Kante, Andreas Christensen, and Tammy Abraham.
Once fully fit, the American is more than likely going to get an automatic spot in Chelsea’s starting IX as most of the players in Lampard’s injury list are forwards.
Pulisic made a switch to the Premier League giants in the summer of 2019 and had already become a crucial part of Lampard’s youngster-packed squad before the injury.
Despite the setback, the American has 12 goal contributions to his name across all competitions for Chelsea this season and is joint-second alongside Mason Mount in the Blues’ EPL top scorers’ chart. He has made a total of 23 appearances for the West London club, mostly as a left winger, though Lampard has been open to testing the 21-year-old in different positions as he seeks to find his perfect front three.
Chelsea face Everton at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, and it remains to be seen how the five-time English champions will line up against their former manager. Chances are Pulisic will not be in the match-day squad, but his return will, nonetheless, be seen as a huge boost for the Stamford Bridge outfit who are still in the FA Cup and the Champions League and need squad depth to finish strongly in the Premier League.
