Chelsea injury news: John Terry suspended but Blues nearly at full strength as Oscar only doubt for Crystal Palace clash

Terry is suspended after being sent-off in the 3-2 victory over West Brom last victory

John Terry (GETTY IMAGES)

Chelsea will face Crystal Palace on Saturday with a squad that is very near to full strength as striker Diego Costa shows no signs of the hamstring injury that plagued him last season and affected his pre-season preparation.

The Blues have stumbled off the line in the defence of their Premier League crown, but recovered from taking one point from their opening two games to record a 3-2 victory over West Brom last Sunday.

That result did not come without its troubles though, as John Terry was shown a straight red card for denying West Brom striker Salomon Rondon a clear goalscoring opportunity. It means that the Chelsea captain is suspended for this weekend’s clash with the Eagles, with Gary Cahill expected to come back into the side to partner Kurt Zouma at centre-back.

Beyond the one-match suspension of Terry, Chelsea are nearly at full fitness, although attacking midfielder Oscar faces a fitness test on a muscular injury that he picked up ahead of the defeat at City which has forced him to miss the last two matches for the Blues.

Victor Moses is the only other doubt heading into the match at Stamford Bridge, although the Nigerian winger is a long way from Jose Mourinho’s first-team plans at present following the addition of Pedro and could yet find himself at another club, either on loan or permanently, before the end of the transfer window.

With Chelsea’s slow start leaving them 10th in the Premier League table and already five points off leaders City, a victory over Palace is a must if Mourinho’s side are to carry some momentum over after the international break.

Mourinho has made it clear that his eyes are on winning the Champions League with the Londoners as well as retaining the title, with Chelsea the notable absentee from a CV that has European successes with both FC Porto and Inter Milan on it. With Chelsea dealt a relatively straightforward Champions League group in the form of Porto, Dynamo Kiev and Maccabi Tel-Aviv, Mourinho will want his side back on course before the games start to approach thick and fast.

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