For Chelsea FC, there are quite a few availability concerns for their next clash, a FA Cup fifth round tie at Barnsley FC. This will be Thomas Tuchel’s fifth match in charge at the club, and the first in the world’s oldest domestic cup competition.
He is expected to rotate his side for this one, but when it comes to team selection, some options are simply just unavailable. Let’s dive right in on that.
Chelsea at Barnsley FC FA Cup 5th Round FYIs
Kickoff: Thurs, Feb 11, 8pm GMT, Oakwell
Chelsea FC Starting XI Prediction: go here
Let’s start with winger Christian Pulisic, who missed out on the win over Sheffield on Sunday due to “family issues.” Nothing more is known at this time, beyond what Tuchel said after the match:
“Christian has some family issues to solve, and family is always first, so we decided to give him a rest.”
It’s impossible to say whether or not, at this point, whether he’ll be back in the lineup or not for this one. Also absent on Sunday was forward Kai Havertz, who was also left out the previous game. He picked up an unspecified injury in training last week, but the issue is not thought to be too severe.
Expect an update on his situation, from Tuchel, tomorrow. With central defender Thiago Silva, it’s much more definitive, plus we have a potential timetable for his return. He’s out with a thigh injury, sustained in the win over Tottenham Hotspur last week.
“With Thiago, we are fighting for him every day but he will be for sure out for the FA Cup so it will take time,” said Tuchel.
“It will be several days but we set the goal, I would like him back for maybe Southampton, that’s realistic but also ambitious. I know Thiago, he will do everything to be ready as soon as possible but it is a muscle injury so you cannot take any risk.”
As for striker Timo Werner, he left the win over the Blades in the 75′ due to a dead leg. He’s probably not going to be risked in this one Tuchel gave the following update in the post-match media availability: “It’s a dead leg. The 10-15 minutes after [the penalty collision] was hard so I told the manager he should take me off because it was a tight game. It’s better to have 11 fit players on the pitch than 10.5.”
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune and SB Nation. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.