Mauricio Pochettino has confirmed Christopher Nkunku will not feature in Chelsea’s meeting with Newcastle United on Saturday as he urged fans to temper their immediate expectations of the Frenchman.
Nkunku was back training on grass during the international break as he stepped up his return from a knee injury which forced him to undergo surgery during pre-season.
Chelsea fans have started to get excited about Nkunku’s imminent debut for the club but Pochettino had the unfortunate duty of confirming the wait for the France international will go on a little longer.
“Still out,” Pochettino said when asked for an update on Nkunku.
“Last week, in few training sessions, still he’s not fully recovered to be part of the tactical sessions. Now is about recovery.”
As 90min revealed earlier this month, Chelsea are aiming for Nkunku to start the Carabao Cup clash with Newcastle on 20 December, with the 26-year-old expected to feature off the bench in the weeks prior.
Just how Pochettino will use Nkunku remains to be seen. Comfortable as both an attacking midfielder, striker and winger, the versatile Frenchman’s best fit for the team is something Pochettino will analyse in the coming weeks.
“He is a player, a fantastic player, that was top scorer in the Bundesliga and he can play in different positions,” the Chelsea boss said. “His quality is amazing.
“Really bad luck to lose him for the beginning of the season and to have the possibility for him to help the team. We are going to find the best way for him to fit with the team. Now he’s going to find massive competition because all of the teammates are ahead of him because in the last four months they were competing and he needs to build his form and best level.”
Pochettino also urged fans not to expect too much from Nkunku upon his return as he seeks to build up his fitness after such a long spell on the sidelines.
“Chelsea, there is always expectation but we need to understand he came from an injury, he needs time,” Pochettino insisted. “We need to be patient with him to start to compete, play and to discover again competition.
“It’s not a competition he is used to playing, and he can recover the feeling from last season, he is a player that came from the Bundesliga and he needs to recover from his injury, to know the league. Different things if he is going to settle quickly but always is to have time to perform his best.”
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