Chelsea head coach Mauricio Pochettino will make his Tottenham Hotspur homecoming on Monday evening, although the Argentine's squad is hardly in tip-top condition ahead of the London derby.

None of Ben Chilwell (thigh), Romeo Lavia (ankle), Wesley Fofana (knee), Christopher Nkunku (knee), Trevoh Chalobah (thigh) or Carney Chukwuemeka (knee) will be involved for the Blues, while Armando Broja and Mykhaylo Mudryk are nursing concerns of their own.

Pochettino is hopeful that Broja will be able to make the bench if he can shake off his knee problem, though, while Mudryk - who is nursing a muscular strain - also ought to make the cut at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

However, the Argentine has hinted that he will avoid risking Reece James, who managed to complete 61 minutes of their EFL Cup win over Blackburn Rovers in midweek, so Axel Disasi may deputise at right-back for the injury-hit Englishman.

Disasi being shifted out wide would allow Benoit Badiashile to join Thiago Silva in front of Robert Sanchez after scoring the opener against Blackburn, while Levi Colwill will hope to get the nod over Marc Cucurella on the left.

A fit-again Enzo Fernandez is primed to link arms with Conor Gallagher and Moises Caicedo in a recognisable engine room, with Cole Palmer operating just ahead of the engine room.

The former Manchester City man will likely form part of an unchanged frontline also comprising Nicolas Jackson and Raheem Sterling, who capitalised on a Rovers defensive error to curl home a sublime second in midweek.

Chelsea possible starting lineup: Sanchez; Disasi, Silva, Badiashile, Colwill; Fernandez, Caicedo, Gallagher; Palmer, Jackson, Sterling

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