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Chelsea welcome Manchester United to Stamford Bridge on Sunday in Matchday 13 of the Premier League. The Blues sit at the top of the league while United sit in eighth place, 12 points off the top.
Chelsea come into the game with an emphatic 4-0 victory over Juventus in the Champions League. However, the win saw N'Golo Kante and Ben Chilwell leave the field due to injury.
Kante left the field just before half-time. The nature of the injury and recovery date is unclear at the moment. But he is a doubt for Chelsea's clash against Manchester United.
Regarding Kante's injury, Thomas Tuchel said after the match:
"N’Golo was the same [as Chilwell]. He got stronger and stronger in the first half then twisted his knee a little bit. So hopefully, it is not too bad."
Chilwell, who looked to be in serious pain, had to be subbed out in the second half. The exact injury is unclear but speculation is that he could be out until January 2022. On Chilwell's injury, Tuchel said:
“It worries me because he was in such a fantastic moment, like Reece on the other side. They were in the best shape they could possibly be. So strong, full of confidence, and quality. He was in a lot of pain and now he feels a bit better. We will have the medical examination tomorrow.”
Meanwhile, Romelu Lukaku seems to be well on the road to full recovery. He was on the bench against Juventus but didn't feature in the game. The Belgian is likely to play against Manchester United, even if only as a substitute.
Chelsea's injury list grows before clash against Manchester United
In addition to Kante, Chilwell and Lukaku, Chelsea also have Kai Havertz and Mateo Kovacic out with injuries.
Havertz picked up a hamstring injury in Chelsea's 3-0 win over Leicester City and was left out of the squad against Juventus. It is unclear if he'll be fit to play against Manchester United this weekend.
Regarding Havertz's injury, Tuchel said in the pre-match press conference ahead of the Juventus tie:
"We had to take Kai [Havertz] off because of hamstring problems. He felt a bit of tension so we took him off. We have some doubts about him and we need to check to see if he can train without any problems. This is more or less the question mark."
Mateo Kovacic, meanwhile, will not feature against Manchester United. He picked up a hamstring injury while preparing for Chelsea's game against Newcastle in October and will be out for some time.
On his injury, Tuchel said:
“Mateo Kovacic is still out.”
Despite all these injuries, Chelsea look a strong side. Manchester United, without a permanent manager, will need a brilliant performance to get a result at Stamford Bridge.
