Antonio Conte will have the freedom to call on rising center back Andreas Christensen despite the defender picking up an injury in the Premier League clash with Brighton last Saturday.
Christensen was substituted in the game after a clash of heads and was replaced by David Luiz. During the game, it looked as though Christensen, who spent the last two seasons on loan at Borussia Monchengladbach, was going to miss a few upcoming matches.
The Denmark international has become one of the best Chelsea players this season with masterclass defending and great composure to complement his long and short passing ability.
He has displaced Luiz in the middle of the three-man defense and his absence will be of great concern to Conte. But the Italian manager has allayed fears among fans that the rising star will be out for a while, insisting the substitution was only precautionary and the player will feature against the Gunners.
“Andreas had a contusion. We made a substitution, but the player didn’t want to come off. At the same time, when you have the possibility to have on the bench players like David Luiz, it was simple for me.
The referee tried to force this substitution. It was a simple contusion. The player is okay. From [Sunday]’s training session, he’s ready.”
Antonio Conte, Football London
