Crystal Palace vs Chelsea: Maurizio Sarri left concerned as injury crisis worsens

The Italian has potentially six players out after Olivier Giroud was forced off at Selhurst Park

Maurizio Sarri says he will meet with Chelsea’s medical staff to see who he can and can’t use, as he expressed concern over an injury crisis that now looks set to make a busy January even more problematic.

Olivier Giroud went off with an ankle problem in the 1-0 win over Crystal Palace, and then departed the ground on crutches, leaving the Italian to survey his options with potentially six players out.

Chelsea are also in the League Cup semi-final against Tottenham Hotspur, with that making it an even tougher month.

“The problem is his ankle,” Sarri said of Giroud. “I don't know the severity. We have to wait for tomorrow. I think that, later in the evening, I will see the doctor for the first results, but I think the real result will only be known tomorrow. In the last few days we were a but unlucky. Yesterday in 10 minutes we had three injuries – [Cesc] Fabregas, [Ruben] Loftus-Cheek and [Danny] Drinkwater – then Giroud today, and we were already without Pedro and [Callum] Hudson-Odoi.

"We are in trouble because, in January, we have to play every three days. Fabregas is a neck problem. The injury was in the last five minutes of training, so I'm not sure whether he has to rest for two or 10 days. I will have a meeting with the doctor this evening.”

N’Golo Kante does seem to have solved another problem for Sarri. The midfielder scored his third goal of the season against Palace, making that his biggest ever haul for an individual campaign, and Sarri believes it shows how he is adjusting to a more attacking role.

“He is improving, especially in his movement without the ball. Today the movement was really very good and done with the right timing. It's very important for us when we have to play against opponents very low, where the strikers and wingers find it hard to find space.

"It's about the movement of the midfielders. We have to work on Loftus and Barkley on this. Loftus, especially, is a very great player with the ball, but he can improve a lot in his movement without the ball.”