Chelsea coach Frank Lampard is still without a number of key first-team members as the Blues gear up for their pre-season friendly with Reading on Sunday.
The Chelsea squad returned to London on Wednesday morning and were given two days off after their trip to Saitama, where they beat Barcelona 2-1.
But N'Golo Kante returned home early from the club's tour of Japan to recover from the knee injury that hampered the Frenchman towards the end of last season.
Reece James is also still absent with the ankle ligament injury sustained while playing for the England Under-20 at the Toulon Tournament and underwent surgery two weeks ago to repair the problem.
Midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek continues on his road to recovery following the ruptured Achilles tendon.
Having been able to take off the protective boot on his foot, Loftus-Cheek was pictured on social media doing some light running, but the 23-year-old is still some distance away from reaching full fitness again.
Callum Hudson-Odoi and Antonio Rudiger remain sidelined with their respective Achilles and meniscus injuries.
Despite his goal against Barcelona, Tammy Abraham is set to drop to the bench as Lampard hands Olivier Giroud the chance to lead the line against Reading.
The 41-year-old could also set up Kurt Zouma alongside Andreas Christensen at centre-back, giving David Luiz a rest.
As for Reading, It is unclear at this stage if Matt Miazga - who returned to Reading on loan from Chelsea in midweek - will be permitted to play against his parent club.
New signings Michael Morrison and Charlie Adam could make their Madejski Stadium debuts after both featuring in a training ground friendly played just hours before the 4-2 victory over Peterborough United on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, long-term absentee Jordan Obita continues to work his way back to full fitness after almost two years on the sidelines.
With their Championship opener against Sheffield Wednesday approaching fast on the horizon, Royals boss Jose Gomes will no doubt look to field his strongest XI for a difficult test.
Predicted lineups
Reading XI: Virginia; Yiadom, Moore, Morrison, Blackett; Rinomhota, Swift, Barrow, Barrett; Olise, Meite.
Chelsea XI: Kepa; Azpilicueta, Christensen, Zouma, Emerson; Jorginho, Kovacic; Pedro, Mount, Pulisic; Giroud.
