Team News: Boost for Chelsea as key defensive duo returns ahead of UCL tie against Malmo

Team News: Thiago Silva and Antonio Rudiger return to Chelsea training

According to the club’s official site, Chelsea have welcomed back Thiago Silva and Antonio Rudiger to first-team training.

This comes as a plus for Thomas Tuchel ahead of the club’s Champions League tie against Malmo. Having lost against Juventus last time around, they will be keen to get all three points at home.

The duo’s absence against Brentford at the weekend was visible at the back. Trevor Chalobah, Andreas Christensen and Malang Sarr all performed admirably but lack the nous that the Blues first choice duo brings to the table.

Silva missed out over the weekend due to his late return from international duty with Brazil. That left him without time to recover and prepare for the trip to Brentford.

Rudiger meanwhile was forced to sit out after picking up an injury while representing Germany during the international break. Both players are the bedrock of the defensive solidity that Tuchel has brought to the club. Having them back will be a big boost for the upcoming set of games.

In a further boost to the Blues, midfielder Hakim Ziyech was also pictured taking part in training at Cobham. The Moroccan international missed the weekend’s trip and now appears to be back to full fitness.

Christian Pulisic appears to be the only Chelsea star out injured at the moment. With the Champions League group beginning to take shape and the Premier League games to come, Tuchel is in a good position to tackle them all.

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Chelsea have picked up three points from two games in the UEFA Champions League so far. Getting all three points against Malmo will be a welcome step to them qualifying for the round of 16 considering the other two teams, Zenit and Juventus, may be a bit more unforgiving than the Swedes in the upcoming gameweeks.