CHELSEA FC️️

Mauricio Pochettino: "Enzo no [not available vs Crystal Palace] but we hope Moi yes. Moi was better on Sunday. He had a high fever and that is why he isolated. We hope he can train a little bit and be ready for Palace." "We need to assess Lesley [Ugochukwu]; I think he felt his hamstring again [against Wolves]. You have to be careful introducing players coming back from injuries, but the problem of Moi meant it was a difficult situation." On Christopher Nkunku: "At the moment he is coming back from injury his best position is more like a 10 or a 9, more than the left or right side like a winger." "He is now starting to understand the Premier League, that teams are very aggressive and the football is very different to other countries. It’s good for him, more minutes." "He will adapt little by little, but scoring will help him adapt quicker." “To have all of the players fit is the moment when we will find the right balance. At the moment we are trying to compensate as we always have eight, 10, 12 players out, so we have to adapt to find the balance and find solutions…” “We need to win. We need to perform. We need to go one better than today. The performances from the beginning of this season have been not bad, we can’t say they’ve been very good…” “So far away [from what our targets were]. To be honest our target was to be on top. We are #Chelsea, with our history and everything, it demands us to be near the top...”

Mauricio Pochettino will hold his pre-Newcastle United press conference from 1:00pm [UK] this afternoon.

Chelsea is the team that is showing the most interest in Barcelona left-back Alejandro Balde. (Sport)

🚨 The Premier League table compared one year ago today. Progress? 😂

🚨🌲 Mauricio Pochettino has a Christmas message: "It is a busy period for us with games and we hope we can get some victories to make it a very special Christmas!"

🚨🗣 Axel Disasi on the defeat to Wolves: "We are very frustrated and angry after the game." "We didn’t win and we feel we deserved more when you see the game. We did good things and bad things. We have to address the mistakes, and when we have the possibility to score, we have to score. We have to see where we can improve and keep going."

🔵 Pochettino: “I’m very pleased to see Nkunku score, it shows how important he can be for us”. “We cannot put too much pressure on him but a quality player who can score goals”. “We are very confident in him to get to his best and be a key player for us”.

Reminder of contract expiry dates at #CFC Mudryk — 2031 Fernandez — 2031 Caicedo — 2031 Jackson — 2031 Sanchez — 2030 Badiashile — 2030 Madueke — 2030 Palmer — 2030 Gusto — 2030 Lavia — 2030 Ugochukwu — 2030

It's defeat for the Blues. #CFC | #WolChe

GOAL NKUNKU 🎈🎈🎈🎈🎈🎈 Sterling assist 2-1 Chelsea pull one back with 4 minutes to go

Mauricio Pochettino on Christopher Nkunku: "I’m not going to put pressure on him. I’m so happy that he made his debut. We’re going to push him, to help him to perform better every day. He needs to be clever also to understand that he needs to push himself…” "He needs to make a double effort, double in everything. He needs to make an impact. In the long term, he’s going to be important for the club and for the team." [via PA Sport]

Mauricio Pochettino: "We are going to train on the 25th. We cannot stop as we have another game on the 27th [vs Crystal Palace]." "I am not going to complain but [Crystal] Palace played on Thursday against Brighton. We cannot stop [training for rest] because the players need to understand there’s a very short space for recovery." "If all of us play 24th and all of us play 27th, then we are in the same circumstances. There’s a difference in recovery. I’m not going to complain but the organisation should be better because it’s not fair." [via Mail Sport]

Casadei on Pochettino: "I did the preseason with him at Chelsea. It was a good experience, he's a really good coach. And I took some really good advice from him and in those two months that I stayed with him, I improved myself. He has got a lot of passion and transfers that passion to the team. I felt it, I felt that passion." [via Football Daily on YouTube ]

🚨🗣 Lesley Ugochukwu: "It’s going to be weird playing on Christmas Eve." "It’s going to be a new thing for me. Last season I played in the Europa League with Stade Rennais so we did have a lot of games, but not in such a short period like this. It’s going to be a new thing for me, but I’m looking forward to it." "I just want to win every game. We just want to give a small smile to our fans in that period. That’s going to be my Christmas gift, winning every game in that period." "And I’m excited to spend Christmas with my Chelsea family!"

Wolves manager Gary O'Neil on Chelsea: "They’re a good side, obviously, and I know they’ve had something like 11 injuries and they’re in a difficult spell, but watching their games and you see the amount of depth they have, even in the cup the other day, when they needed a goal – even with the injuries – they still had hundreds of millions of pounds worth of talent to bring on, so they’ve got a good squad that are finding their way It’s clear now what they’re trying to do and they’ll definitely finish higher in the league than where they are now. They’re a team who’s improving and will continue to improve as they’ve got a good coach as well. It’s a tough test for us."

Mauricio Pochettino: "Enzo is going to be out of the game [vs Wolves]. We are going to see if he can be involved again as soon as possible. You already have the information that it was a hernia and he also didn’t feel well. We are going to give treatment with the doctor. For me, it is not going to be a problem I think he is going to be as soon as possible again with the group." On team bonding: "It has become more natural [the environment]. It is about giving them the possibility to take decisions and treat them like men because they are men, they are young, but they are men..." "You need to give them the capacity to be [here] or not. If they want to be it is in a positive way. It is about creating a natural environment which is strong and positive and where if you want to belong to the group..." [via Scott Trotter]

The Chelsea boys. 🎄😁

Mauricio Pochettino on Reece James: "He feels well. We were talking, he has started his recovery, one day closer to be with the group. We are all positive around him and to help in the best way. Of course it's tough for a player like him." "The most important thing is to sort the problem, helping him be strong and positive because that's very important." "We don't know for sure [when he will return]. The most important is to see him back here and assess day by day. 7-8 weeks for sure. Hope, hope, that is my wish [less than four months]." On Christopher Nkunku: "Everyone was excited. Everyone wanted to see him be involved. When the results are up and down, it's good news because of his capacity to help the team. But we need to be patient and provide him the capacity to find his best form." On Conor Gallagher: "This type of situation is always between the club and player. It's difficult for the coach to talk. It's going to be a decision of the club and player. I am coaching the team to perform. So far, he's doing fantastic for the team." "In my previous experiences, I always try to give my best advice to the club. Always it is about to talk, analyse and then to take the best decision for the club. But, I repeat, in many experiences, it's always about the club and player." On playing centre-backs at full-back: "We need to consider many things. It's a good question. Consideration is about Malo Gusto coming back from injury, that's why we played Axel at right-back [and Malo then came on vs Newcastle]."

Two midfielders back to full team training with the group! 🇧🇪🇫🇷

It’s *checks calendar* Friday and that means we’ve got a pre-match press conference from Mauricio Pochettino. 1:00pm [UK] start time.