Chelsea star Christopher Nkunku picked up a knee injury in the 1-1 draw against Borussia Dortmund
Mauricio Pochettino feels the knee injury sustained by Christopher Nkunku isn’t due to bad conditions on the pitch as Chelsea drew 1-1 with Borussia Dortmund at Soldier Field in their pre-season clash.
The Blues played their game on an even and patchy pitch following an event by ED Sheeran at the weekend, which saw 73,000 people attend the concert. While there were reasons to be optimistic, Nkunku’s injury put a damper on things.
The Frenchman was stretched off from the field midway, and Pochettino claims the doctor will assess the gravity of the injury in London. Goals from Mason Burstow for Chelsea and Marius Wolf for Borussia Dortmund saw West Londoners end their pre-season tour with a draw.
They will next face Liverpool in their first Premier League game of the 2023–24 season, and they could miss the former RB Leipzig forward due to a knee injury. This is a massive blow for a side who are still reeling from their failure to bring in major additions for the senior squad.
However, Pochettino has given an update and feels the pitch was not to blame for the 25-year-old injury, (h/t Daily Mail), and he said after the game:
‘’He feels something in his knee, but hopefully it is not a big issue and that he can be [back] quickly with the team. Now we need a few days to assess him, and until we get back to London, it is difficult to know.”
‘’I didn’t see the action, but I’m not about to complain.” Always, we take some risks because the pitch is not perfect because they are using it for different sports, and that is sometimes the risk of the tour, yes.”
Nkunku is our standout arrival this summer and losing him for the season opener is a blow. His absence will further put a dent in an attack that struggled to make a big difference last season. Pochettino needs to put on a strong start if he is keen to take Chelsea back to the UEFA Champions League.
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Nkunku already has earlier made a full recovery from a knee ailment he suffered during the 2022 World Cup, and he once again picked up another knee injury just weeks before our opening game of the Premier League. We can only hope that the injury is not catastrophic and that he can recover in time for our important opener against Liverpool.