Chelsea
forward Christian Pulisic is facing months out through injury, says head
coach Graham Potter.
Pulisic came off in the first half of Chelsea's 1-0 home defeat to
Manchester City in the Premier League with a knee problem.
Potter initially said the USA international would miss a couple of weeks
but, following further assessment, the time frame around Pulisic's return
has shifted quite sizeably.
However, there is positive news about Chelsea's other striking options with
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang available for Thursday's trip to Fulham.
Raheem Sterling's situation is less clear - he was injured in the same
league game against Man City - with Potter non-committal over the amount of
time the forward will spend sidelines.
"Pierre is fine and he will be in the squad," said Potter. "Christian is a
couple of months we think. Raheem is less, hopefully less than that."
Will Joao Felix play vs Fulham?
Joao Felix is a timely arrival on loan from Atletico Madrid for the
remainder of the season with the news of Pulisic's injury being more severe
than first thought.
Chelsea are paying around £9m as a loan fee and covering all the Portugal
international's wages, but do not have an option to buy Felix at the end of
the season.
Potter is facing an injury crisis at Stamford Bridge and admits it has
"sharpened the focus of the club" in their pursuit of Felix.
Felix is thought to be in consideration for Thursday's game at Fulham and
Potter has said in terms of his fitness the forward is ready to be thrown
straight in.
Potter added: "From a physical perspective, he can go in. It's always a
little bit of an unknown period as he is going from one club to another, but
that's on a case-to-case basis."
Potter 'in regular dialogue' with owners
Potter is facing mounting pressure at Chelsea having lost five of the last
seven matches in all competitions and the club languishing in 10th in the
league table.
Chelsea fans voiced their discontent with the results by singing Thomas
Tuchel's name when the Blues were thrashed 4-0 at Man City in the FA Cup on
Sunday.
Todd Boehly, the chairman of Chelsea, who agreed to pay a record £21.5m to
bring Potter to Chelsea from Brighton after he sacked Tuchel in September,
is thought to be standing by his man during this difficult spell.
Potter insists that is the case, saying: "I am in regular dialogue with all
the owners and they've been really supportive. We speak two or three times a
week, I'd say."
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