New Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel says both Kurt Zouma and Kai Havertz will undergo late fitness tests ahead of the Blues trip across the capital to face Tottenham on Thursday night.
The duo picked up the knocks in training, and now face a race against time to be fit for the London derby.
Speaking ahead of his first meeting with José Mourinho in the dugout, Tuchel said both the centre-back and the attacking midfielder's problems were 'little', but would require scans. Otherwise, Chelsea will be at full strength at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Kurt Zouma and Kai Havertz are doubts for the Spurs game after picking up injuries in training today: 'They came off the pitch with little issues which we are checking now. It's questionable if they will be in the squad for tomorrow.'#TOTCHE
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) February 3, 2021
"We have two little issues today on the training pitch," said Tuchel, as quoted by the BBC.
"Kurt Zouma and Kai Havertz went off the pitch with little issue but they are taking images now.
"Everybody else is available."
Zouma is yet to feature under Tuchel, having lost his place in the starting lineup in the final days of Frank Lampard's tenure, with Antonio Rüdiger coming back into the team to partner Thiago Silva at the heart of the Blues' defence.
Havertz started his compatriot's first game in charge against Wolves and looked spritely, although he only feature for ten minutes last time out against Burnley, which suggests he had a role to play on Thursday evening.
Alongside Havertz, fellow summer signing Timo Werner is another player who Tuchel will be hoping can play into some form, with the head coach claiming Chelsea would look to play to his strengths.
"It is our responsibility to create moments where he can bring out his best, which means attacking the space in behind to use his speed," he said.
"We create situations with the whole team to use his strengths. You can talk in training but nothing matters if they don't score in the game. He has good memories at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. He has scored for Chelsea and RB Leipzig there and he is not looking for excuses. He is working hard with a smile."
Speaking about facing a Mourinho side, Tuchel added: "He has now built a Spurs team with Moussa Sissoko and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg that are super competitive. They have outstanding quality and speed with Son Heung-min and Gareth Bale.
"I have the biggest respect for him because he is building teams at the highest level to compete in game after game.
"We are doing it in our style and there are many ways to succeed. He is a world class coach but we are here to beat him and we are very excited to have matches like this."
Meanwhile, Tottenham will be without talismanic striker Harry Kane, as well as midfielders Dele Alli and Giovani Lo Celso and left-back Sergio Reguilón.
Source : 90min