Christopher Nkunku has been sidelined with a knee injury since August and was given a return date of December. Mauricio Pochettino wants to temper expectations, however, saying in Chelsea’s press conference that the 26-year-old won’t be rushed back.
“Nkunku is still out. There is no timeframe for (him), it is difficult to say because we need to assess day-by-day. (He is) in a good condition. Nkunku was doing things with the group last week but it is still not a full recovery to be part of the squad,” he told reporters.
Nkunku hasn’t had the best luck
Nkunku joined Chelsea from RB Leipzig over the summer but picked up the injury one month later. He was forced to undergo surgery, so his start to life at Chelsea couldn’t have gone worse. That being said, it’s good news that Nkunku has been doing light training with the squad. His return won’t be fast-tracked, however, as Pochettino doesn’t want to risk a setback in his recovery.
Chelsea needed the French international when they were struggling for goals earlier in the season. The Blues scored one or less goals in six of their first eight games of the campaign. Nkunku was coming off the back of 23 goals and nine assists from 36 games in 2022/23.
The 26-year-old’s return is being eagerly anticipated, but Chelsea are in a much better place months later. The Blues have five wins from their last seven while being unbeaten to Arsenal, Tottenham and Man City.
Chelsea side won’t be easy to break into
Pochettino noted that Nkunku won’t walk into the side when fit because Chelsea are firing on all cylinders. Nicolas Jackson has six goals in nine league starts to make up for a slow start. Raheem Sterling has contributed five goals from 11 starts while Cole Palmer has contributed six goals from six starts. Even Mykhailo Mudryk has scored two goals in his last five appearances.
Pochettino added: “(Nkunku) is going to find massive competition because all his team-mates are ahead of him because for the last four months. We need to understand that he comes from an injury so he needs time. We’re going to need to be patient with him to start to compete, play and discover again the competition.”
Chelsea have scored eight goals in their last two league games, so Pochettino has finally cracked the code. Nkunku will brilliantly compliment the Blues’ goal-laded attack when he does return though.
In other news, Cole Palmer has impressed for Chelsea in a false-nine role
