LONDON (AFP) - Thomas Tuchel confirmed Chelsea face a period without Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner after the Champions League holders were rocked by their forwards' injury problems in Wednesday's (Oct 20) 4-0 win against Malmo. Tuchel's side brushed aside the Swedish minnows at Stamford Bridge thanks to Jorginho's penalty brace and goals from Andreas Christensen and Kai Havertz. But Chelsea's second Group H victory, after losing to Juventus in their previous match, was significantly tarnished by the ankle injury suffered by Belgium striker Lukaku and a hamstring issue for Germany forward Werner. Both had to come off in the first half and Chelsea boss Tuchel will be waiting nervously to see how quickly they can return. "We have a twist of the ankle for Romelu, and muscle injury and hamstring for Timo, so they will be some days out I guess," Tuchel said. "We have a lot of games, so now we have to find solutions, no excuses." It would be a major blow if the pair are sidelined for a long period in the midst of a hectic schedule as Chelsea try to retain their position at the top of the Premier League, while pushing to qualify for the Champions League last 16. "The two were in good shape, they are dangerous and can create and score so we need to find solutions and guys who waited for their chance need to step up and score," Tuchel said. "The race is on, the guys who start against Norwich have our trust and we will try to find new solutions. "We have won games before with Werner and Lukaku, we don't want these problems too often but it happens during a season." Tuchel admitted this week that Lukaku has suffered from mental and physical fatigue amid a draining schedule for club and country. The Belgium striker has now gone seven Chelsea games without a goal after starting with four in four following his £98 million (S$180 million) club record move from Inter Milan. Frustratingly for Lukaku, he had looked closer to his best and it was his powerful surge that won the penalty converted by Jorginho, in the process causing his injury. While Werner has endured another difficult season, his injury will leave Havertz as Tuchel's only experienced option for the central striker's role. The decision to allow Tammy Abraham and Olivier Giroud to leave Chelsea since the end of last season might now prove costly for Chelsea. A relatively undemanding fixture list in the next few weeks is the only saving grace for Tuchel if he is denied the services of Lukaku and Werner for long. Rampant Chelsea After nine minutes, Thiago Silva curled a cross into the Malmo area and Christensen timed his run to meet it with a volley that bounced off the slick turf as it sped past Johan Dahlin from 10 yards. It was the Denmark defender's first goal for Chelsea since his debut in 2014. In the 21st minute, Lukaku bulled his way through the Malmo defence with a twisting run, prompting Lasse Nielsen to haul the striker down with a crude foul that forced him off. Jorginho took the penalty and altered his usual hop-step technique to drive a powerful strike past Dahlin for his first goal this season. More on this topic Related Story Football: Ronaldo header seals United comeback win over Atalanta in Champions League Related Story Football: Relentless Bayern crush Benfica 4-0 with four goals in 15 minutes in Champions League Tuchel's injury woes mounted just before half-time when Werner was forced off after pulling up while turning in the Malmo area. Havertz provided a welcome glimpse of his quality in his audition for the striker's role as he bagged Chelsea's third goal in the 48th minute. Callum Hudson-Odoi, on for Werner, led a dynamic break that finished with Havertz clipping a composed shot in off the far post. Chelsea were rampant and Antonio Rudiger's muscular burst was curtailed by Eric Larsson's foul, conceding a penalty that Jorginho nonchalantly slotted home in the 57th minute. The second-placed Blues remain three points behind group leaders Juventus with three games to play. More on this topic Related Story Football: Barca edge past Dynamo to revive Champions League hopes at half-empty Camp Nou Related Story Football: Lukaku scores first Stamford Bridge goals as Chelsea beat Villa
LONDON (AFP) - Manchester United will be without Raphael Varane due to a groin injury that leaves Ole Gunnar Solskjaer short on options at centre-back for a demanding few weeks. The French defender suffered the injury during his country's 2-1 win over Spain on Sunday (Oct 10) in the Nations League final. "Raphael Varane sustained a groin muscle injury in the UEFA Nations League final and has commenced rehabilitation at the club," United said in a statement. "He will be out for a few weeks." United captain Harry Maguire is also sidelined by a calf problem leaving Solskjaer without his strongest centre-back pairing. Eric Bailly, whose one appearance this season came in a League Cup loss to West Ham, or Phil Jones, who has not played since January 2020, could now start Saturday's trip to Leicester in the Premier League. After a visit to the Foxes, the Red Devils face Atalanta at home in the Champions League before fixtures against rivals Liverpool and Tottenham later this month. More on this topic Related Story Football: Ex-boss Ferguson says Man United must pick 'best players' after Ronaldo benched Related Story Football: Man United stumble again as Chelsea top Premier League
LONDON (REUTERS) - Manchester United defender Alex Telles is likely to be sidelined until September with an ankle injury and set to miss the start of the season, manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said on Tuesday (July 27). The Brazilian left back sustained the injury in pre-season training last week after he slipped and twisted his ankle and Solskjaer initially said he would be "out for a few weeks". "Unfortunately, it's worse news on Alex Telles than we hoped for, his ankle injury is a little bit more severe than we hoped and he'll be out for a little spell at least, the whole of August I would think," Solskjaer told the club's website. Telles, 28, was second choice to Luke Shaw last season and made 24 appearances across all competitions since joining the club from Porto in 2020. He could be unavailable for United's first three Premier League games, against Leeds United at home on Aug 14, at Southampton eight days later and Wolverhampton Wanderers away on Aug 29. More on this topic Related Story Football: Man United agree deal to sign Real centre back Varane Related Story Football: Manchester United sign Sancho on five-year deal from Dortmund
LOS ANGELES (AFP) - LeBron James limped out of the Los Angeles Lakers' game against the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday (March 20), potentially handing the NBA champions another massive injury headache. The Lakers superstar checked out of Saturday's game at the Staples Centre in the second quarter after appearing to roll his right ankle following a collison with Atlanta's Solomon Hill. James collapsed to the court and writhed in pain, clutching his right ankle before returning to the game briefly. He hit a three-pointer after heading back on court but soon afterwards left the game for good with his athletic trainer, knocking over a chair in frustration on his way to the locker room. Any serious injury to the 36-year-old James would be a devastating blow to the Lakers, who are already without star Anthony Davis due to a long-term injury. James and Davis were the key figures in the Lakers' championship-winning season last year. The Lakers are second in the Western Conference standings with 28 wins and 13 losses.
PARIS (AFP) - Rafael Nadal said Friday (Feb 26) he will not play in the Acapulco ATP tournament in March because of a back injury which also caused his withdrawal from next week's Rotterdam event. The world number two is therefore unlikely to play again until the season's first Masters event in Miami from March 24. "I am very sorry not to participate in Acapulco 2021," the 34-year-old Nadal, champion in Acapulco in 2005, 2013 and 2020 wrote on Twitter. "It is a difficult year for everyone and in my current state of health, with a bad back, it is impossible to make such a long trip. "I love Acapulco, I have played the last four years, but this year it is not possible. Hopefully in 2022!" Nadal, a 20-time Grand Slam title winner, was bothered by the back injury in Melbourne where he was knocked out of the Australian Open in the quarter-finals by Stefanos Tsitsipas from two sets up. The Spanish star could lose his number two world ranking next week to Russia's Daniil Medvedev if the Australian Open runner-up makes the final in Rotterdam. More on this topic Related Story Tennis: Nadal pulls out of Rotterdam Open with back issue Related Story Tennis: Tsitsipas stuns Nadal in five sets at Australian Open

