Chelsea have already lost their marquee signing of the transfer window so far, Christopher Nkunku, to injury. Nkunku picked up a left knee injury during the 1-1 draw against Borussia Dortmund in a pre-season friendly on Thursday.
The Frenchman, who joined Chelsea this summer from RB Leipzig for £52 million, initially got knocked down in the ninth minute. This was after he was clipped by Mats Hummels inside the opposition's penalty area. He was replaced by Mykhailo Mudryk in the 22nd minute after being knocked down again.
It appears the damage was done to his left knee. The attacker was seen watching from the bench with an ice pack strapped to the area. Giving an update on Nkunku after the game, Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino admitted he didn't know the severity of the issue. Club doctors are still checking on the player.
"The doctors are checking him, and I hope it is not too serious an issue," he said. "He fell in the action [against Hummels], which was maybe a penalty, and he felt something in his knee, but we hope it is nothing big.
Nkunku suffers an injury scare
"We hope he can be back quickly with the team. We need a few days to assess him." Many fans blamed Nkunku's injury on the shocking conditions of Soldiers Field in Chicago. The grounds had been used for an Ed Sheeran concert five days prior, and the playing surface was worse for wear. However, Pochettino refused to blame the pitch condition as a factor in his star signing's injury.
"We took some risks because the pitch is not flawless because the facilities are used for a different sport," he added. "We won't blame the pitch for the injury, though. For me, it was bad luck." Chelsea remain undefeated in pre-season thanks to 19-year-old forward Mason Burstow, who equalized in the 89th minute after Marius Wolf broke the deadlock nine minutes earlier with a fortuitous goal. The youngster directed a well-placed header into the back post as he sprinted in celebration with his teammates.
The Blues' next fixture comes on August 13 in their Premier League opener against Liverpool. Pochettino will hope Nkunku can be cleared for the game.
