Here are the Chelsea evening headlines for Thursday, November 19.
Lampard confirms pair will miss Newcastle trip
Chelsea have a strangely underwhelming record at St James’ Park in the last few years, having only been victorious on one of their last seven visits to Newcastle.
Yet if they can win on Saturday lunchtime, they will move to the top of the Premier League. While another team will probably replace them before the weekend is out, it would be a step in the right direction for the Blues.
However, Frank Lampard has confirmed that if his side are to win, they will have to do so without the talents of Thiago Silva and Christian Pulisic.
But there was good news regarding one star returning, as you can read here.
Injury warning with early kick-off
Jurgen Klopp may not be the most popular rival manager as far as Lampard is concerned, but they will be in agreement about the perils of the 12:30 kick off on a Saturday following an international break.
Klopp recently voiced his displeasure about that scenario, and the Chelsea manager did likewise as his side face that exact problem this weekend.
“That 12.30pm slot, how often does it need to be there? It's absolutely not the optimum way to have players preparing for a Premier League game,” said Lampard.
The boss’ other comments on match scheduling and injuries are definitely worth a few minutes of your time.
Chelsea youngster heading to Germany?
Fussball Transfers (as reported by Sport Witness) have claimed that Borussia Dortmund and Stuttgart are both monitoring one of Chelsea’s talented young players.
Emran Soglo, a 15-year-old forward, has reportedly caught their eye and could be on his way to Germany if they get their way.
The Blues want Soglo to sign a long term deal and commit his future to the club, yet four years ago they were accused of ruining the player’s career – when he was just 11! – by playing him out of position.
It will certainly be interesting to see how this situation is resolved.
