One football expert has today tipped a Chelsea player to have an immediate impact in front of goal.
The club are currently waiting to welcome back a number of long-term injured players, with a couple of them now very close to returning to full training, and then to the squad.
Both Romeo Lavia and Christopher Nkunku were spotted on the grass last week doing some light cardio work, and the next transition should soon see them joining in with full group training.
And it is Nkunku that French football expert Jonathan Johnson believes will have an immediate impact for Chelsea, who despite scoring freely in their last couple of games, had actually been struggling in front of goal before that.
Speaking exclusively to CaughtOffside for his Daily Briefing column, Johnson explained what Chelsea fans can expect from Nkunku once he finally comes back into contention after such a lengthy spell on the sidelines for the Blues.
Johnson said: “Regardless of Chelsea’s upturn in form lately, Nkunku will be a starter for Mauricio Pochettino once he is fully fit. It might take some time for the France international to get back to his best, but he will be keen to make up for lost time and has his spot with Les Bleus to fight for as well.
“I suspect that he will have a fairly immediate impact in front of goal as Chelsea seek to make a push for a European qualification spot over the second half the season. The Blues need to be wary of recurring injury issues with their summer signing, but he undoubtedly has the quality to improve this team once he finally returns to action.
“Of course, we’ve seen real improvement from Nicolas Jackson of late, so that might have led some to question if Nkunku would get straight back into the team, but it’s important to remember how eager Chelsea were to get this deal done, and wrapped up early last year, so I’m confident he remains a key part of Pochettino’s project.”
