Mauricio Pochettino will take on Jurgen Klopp at Stamford Bridge. The Blues will play their EPL opener against the Reds, as both teams keep preparing.
Chelsea had a tremendous time during their USA pre-season tour. They dazzled flawlessly, staying unbeaten and winning the EPL Summer Series.
Also, Liverpool showed their readiness for the 2023-2024 season. Despite losing to Bayern Munich, the Reds showed their winning mentality, revealing a massive sign of improvement.
While Arsenal takes on Nottingham Forest and Manchester United takes on Wolverhampton. The Blues will face the Reds, as per their EPL opener for the 2023-2024 season.
Of course, both Chelsea and Liverpool are looking forward to balancing their midfields. The Blues are hell-bent on signing Moisés Caicedo from Brighton Albion.
Also, Jurgen Klopp desires to add Roméo Lavia to his midfield. As a result, the two Premier League sides may face each other with their current midfielders.
Meanwhile, the West London club have received bad news ahead of their showdown against Liverpool. And it may actually affect the team’s performance.
Christopher Nkunku won’t be available to face Jurgen Klopp’s men next week. And that’s more than bad news for the West London club in their EPL opener.
The Frenchman sustained a knee injury against Borussia Dortmund on their USA pre-season tour. And he was replaced by Mykhailo Mudryk after 26 minutes.
However, the injury isn’t really severe. The medical assessment was positive, and the French international won’t be placed on a long-term injury list at Chelsea.
On the contrary, the West London club already have Wesley Fofana, Benoit Badiashile, and Trevoh Chalobah on the sidelines. They are all unavailable to face the Reds.
Despite the fact that Christopher Nkunku’s injury isn’t that severe. His unavailability against Liverpool is such a blow for Mauricio Pochettino’s troops.
Nevertheless, Chelsea have enough reinforcements in the squad. Mykhailo Mudryk is most likely to replace him on the left flank, while Chukwuemeka or Maatsen play as attacking midfielders.
The Blues actually need Nicolas Jackson and Christopher Nkunku’s combo against the Reds. Unfortunately, the Frenchman won’t be available.
Meanwhile, Jurgen Klopp has a full and healthy squad to face the West London club. Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai are fit to play at Stamford Bridge.
With the unavailability of Nkunku, Mauricio Pochettino would have to be very tactical against the Reds. The Argentine actually knows how to fight tactically.
Of course, the Blues were able to share points against Borussia Dortmund on their USA pre-season tour. As a result, they should be fine without the Frenchman next week.
Both Chelsea and Liverpool dazzled poorly last season. Which means they would want to start the 2023-2024 season with a massive victory over each other.
At the same time, the two Premier League sides never go easy on each other. However, it’s unfortunate for Chelsea because Christopher Nkunku won’t be available.
Source
Nizaar Kinsella of Standard Sport