Chelsea boss Graham Potter has revealed that Kepa Arrizabalaga will miss their upcoming clash against Arsenal through injury.
The Spaniard went off injured at halftime in the Blues’ weekend defeat
to Brighton, with Edouard Mendy coming on to replace him for the remainder of
the game.
As a
result, the latter started in goal for Chelsea in their Champions League group
stage tie against Dinamo Zagreb, with the west London side winning 2-1 on a wet
and windy night at Stamford Bridge.
It
was revealed after the game that Kepa arrived at the ground on crutches
following his injury from the weekend.
After
the win against Zagreb, Potter revealed that the goalkeeper, who had been in
fine form prior to the trip to Brighton, will be unavailable for the clash
against London rivals Arsenal.
Speaking to BT Sport, the head coach said: “No he
won’t be okay for Sunday (vs Arsenal).
“It’s
only precautionary (crutches) to keep weight off, progressing well but won’t be
available for Sunday.”
Arsenal
are currently top of the Premier League table after 12 games, with Chelsea
sitting in sixth.
The Blues are also
set to be without another one of their key players, with Ben Chilwell coming
off injured in the win against Zagreb.
In the final minutes of the game, the left wing-back ran to chase the
ball but soon pulled up and held his hamstring, and left Stamford Bridge on
crutches.
His place in the England squad for the World Cup could also be in
jeopardy as a result, and Potter revealed after the game that it is a ‘blow’ to
the side.
“It’s a blow for us on an otherwise positive
evening,” he told the media
in his post-match press conference.
“To see him pull up
like that, it’s not a great sight. So fingers crossed when we get it scanned it
isn’t too bad.”
Despite
the injury to Chilwell, Chelsea did well to come from behind against their
Croatian opponents.
Bruno
Petkovic gave Zagreb the lead early on with a header from inside the area, but
Raheem Sterling soon pulled the score level with his fourth goal of the season.
Debutant
Denis Zakaria then netted his first goal for the club on the half hour mark,
with his strike proving to be the decider on the night.
Chelsea
have now finished top of Group E and will advance to the last-16 of the
tournament.
The
Blues will soon find out who they will face in the knockout stages as they set
their sights on
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