The 36-year-old got up gingerly after landing awkwardly in the
second half of the Champions League group match but asked
after the game about whether the defender had suffered any ill
effects from the fall, Lampard said he had not been informed
of any issue:
“He has not flagged it, so I think we are okay. I thought Thiago
showed the things I have spoken about, his experiences and
qualities.”
Silva’s experience and assuring presence at the back
undoubtedly helped the Blues keep a clean sheet against
Sevilla and supporters will be hoping he is fit for this
weekend’s game against Manchester United.
Hakim Ziyech has yet to start his first game for Chelsea, but
he did come off the bench for the second game in a row
yesterday evening. The Moroccan international says, though,
that he may need some time to recover 100% fitness following
his knee injury:
“I still have a ways to go [to reach full fitness]. Obviously, I
didn’t play for a long time, because of the virus and [then] it
was a bit unlucky that the injury came. So I just try to stay
calm and everything will come right soon.”
The 27-year-old’s comments are not surprising considering he
has not started a competitive match since the 7th March,
when he played 68 minutes in Ajax’s 3-1 win over Heerenveen.
After getting half an hour under his belt on Tuesday, he could
be in line to make the eleven for the first time this weekend.
Chelsea’s only other fitness concern is Billy Gilmour at the
moment. The 19-year-old had knee surgery over the summer
and has missed the start of this season. Lampard commented
on the midfielder’s fitness before the Sevilla game, stating he
is still three to four weeks away from returning to full training.
It means he is now expected to be back in action after the
next international break, with it being hoped he’ll be in
contention for the games against the likes of Newcastle and
Rennes.
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