Denis Zakaria, who arrived at Stamford Bridge on loan from Juventus on deadline day, has yet to make his Blues debut and has not even been named to the Premier League squads this season.
The Swiss midfielder has stated his willingness to play and that he has no concerns about his fitness, stating that "I believe in myself 100 percent," but it appears that the problem is more technical.
Zakaria was brought in at the request of Thomas Tuchel, but since the German has left, the midfielder dubbed "the Octopus" by his teammates has been overlooked by new manager Graham Potter.According to reports, the Blues are already looking into ways to end the loan deal in January, and Zakaria has been absent from Matchday squads as a result. According to UEFA rules, players can only play for two clubs in the same season, and the 25-year-old had already made two Serie A appearances for the Turin club this season before joining the Blues.
As a result, if he plays for Chelsea, he will be unable to join another club on loan in January, which may hurt Juventus' chances of accepting the request to terminate the loan move, as the midfielder is clearly surplus to requirements under Max Allegri.It is for this reason that young midfielder Carney Chukwuemeka, rather than Zakaria, was given his debut against Wolves, which is bad news for both the midfielder and Switzerland, who will have a man lacking match fitness joining their World Cup squad in a month's time.
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The Blues are currently fourth in the Premier League table, four points and one place behind Tottenham Hotspur, who play Everton on Saturday.
Graham Potter has had a successful start to his tenure as manager of The Blues, winning four games in a row since his first game in charge, a 1-1 draw with RB Salzburg.
Wins over Crystal Palace and Wolves, as well as back-to-back Champions League victories over AC Milan, have put Chelsea's season back on track after a rocky start.
Potter is expected to be without N'Golo Kante for the trip to Villa Park, despite the fact that the Frenchman has already missed two months of the season due to injury.
That means Jorginho could be reunited with Mateo Kovacic in midfield, though Conor Gallagher and Ruben Loftus-Cheek will also be vying for a starting spot.
Jorginho and Kante both entered the final year of their contracts this summer, and the former's agent has responded to reports linking the Italian to a move away from Stamford Bridge.
According to Fabrizio Romano, Joao Santos has stated that his priority is to negotiate a new contract with his current employers.
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