Mauricio Pochettino says that he hopes Mykhailo Mudryk’s injury is nothing serious and that the Ukrainian will be available for Chelsea’s trip to Burnley on Saturday.
Mudryk scored a first Chelsea goal since his big-money January move from Shakhtar Donetsk on Monday night, as the Blues won 2-0 at west London rivals Fulham.
Armando Broja also notched on his first start since rupturing his ACL in a mid-season friendly against Aston Villa last December.
Broja went down in the second half at Craven Cottage, sparking fears of a setback as he went off, but later said that the move was merely precautionary.
Speaking to talkSPORT, Broja said: “No injury - just a precaution.”
Mudryk, meanwhile, was replaced by Ian Maatsen at half-time on Monday, with Pochettino subsequently confirming a thigh issue.
“I hope with Mykhailo it’s not a big issue, because he felt something in the first half,” the Blues boss said. “I hope it is nothing and he’ll be available for Saturday. It’s something in his quad in the first half. He didn’t feel comfortable playing.
“We got what we deserved. The performance was very good. I am pleased for Mudryk and for Armando — for Mykhailo because he scored his first goal in the Premier League and for Armando after a long period out, to score again.”
Speaking about why Mudryk may have taken 24 appearances to notch his first Chelsea goal, Pochettino said: “It’s about maturity, adaptation. When you arrive in a team, it’s not easy to settle because, being honest, [we have] too many young players so it’s not solid.
“This is difficult, but it’s about patience. It’s about trusting these guys. It’s a massive job, step by step. We need to keep improving.
“I’m so happy for the players. He has played [consistently this season] because he deserved to. He showed in the training sessions that he deserved to.”
Injury-plagued Chelsea suffered yet another scare in the closing moments at Fulham, where Moises Caicedo limped off after a collision with ex-Blues stalwart Willian.
Asked for an update on the club-record signing after the match, Pochettino said: “Hope also is nothing wrong but it was a contusion.”
