Chelsea latest injury updates: James and Badiashile to return; Broja, Chilwell and Nkunku out

Chelsea will be without at least six first team players due to injury for their derby against Arsenal at Stamford Bridge. Club football returns for Blues fans with a bang as they take on one of the best teams in the Premier League, but will be hoping to put up a tough fight having built up a streak of wins before the break. 

Club captain Reece James is expected to be in contention for a space in the starting line-up for Mauricio Pochettino. On the other hand, Malo Gusto could also battle for the right-back spot having served a ban for his red card in the game vs Aston Villa. 

Benoit Badiashile could also return to the starting line-up for the first time this season, with his former Monaco teammate Axel Disasi a doubt for Arsenal alongside Nicolas Jackson. 

Chelsea injury news: Broja, Chilwell and Nkunku remain sidelined 

Armando Broja recently suffered an injury to his left knee, having previously suffered an ACL injury in his right knee. The Albanian is being scanned for injuries and will miss the game against Arsenal, while Trevoh Chalobah and Carney Chukwuemeka suffered setbacks on the road to recovery and will undergo further assessment to determine the extent of their injury. 

Ben Chilwell, Wesley Fofana and Christopher Nkunku are still recovering and it will be a while before they return to team training. The same can be said for new signing Romeo Lavia, who is yet to play a single minute for Chelsea. 

The Belgian is expected to be out until December, having suffered an ankle injury in training.