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With a new chapter in the ongoing rivalry between two London football clubs on the horizon, Mauricio Pochettino, the head coach, had high praise for Mikel Arteta, the manager of Chelsea's arch-rival, Arsenal.
The Premier League will return to action with the North West London derby as Chelsea faces Arsenal at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. Ahead of the clash, the Argentine manager was singing praises of the Gunners coach Arteta in the pre-match press conference and said as quoted from Sky Sports, "What Arsenal are showing is because he's one of the best. I don't care if he's young or not young - he's one of the best coaches in the world. It's not only about being good tactically - it's about how you manage people, the media, the owners, the sporting director. It's not only about being clever." Pochettino's stint with Chelsea didn't start as he would have hoped for. After eight fixtures, the Blues are ranked 11th in the table with eleven points. With only three victories in their bag, Pochettino will be looking to add a couple of more points to improve their status on the table. Before the international break kicked in, Chelsea clinched a comprehensive 4-1 victory over Burnley. They failed to keep the momentum going and could struggle to regain it as they could be without some of their key players in the team as Pochettino admitted there are still decisions to be made on a number of players' availability. "I think we need to assess now as we finished the training session a little bit late,' explained Pochettino. 'We need to assess Axel Disasi, we need to assess Nico Jackson, also Reece James we need to assess. Reece was training good the last few days and it's now to talk about with all the medical staff and everything and then decide if he can be part of the squad tomorrow," Pochettino said. "Armando Broja is out because he's irritated his knee a little bit, but it is the other knee, not the one that was a problem in the past. We have a few players we need to assess to see if tomorrow they can be available, can play or can be on the bench or maybe out of the list. Benoit Badiashile maybe can be available also for the match," Pochettino added. But there is a bit of relief as Pochettino confirmed that both midfielders Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo look likely to be involved in the clash. "Enzo trained yesterday. Caicedo arrived yesterday in the afternoon and was checked with the doctor and was in a very good state. They both trained with us today with the group and I think they are ready," Pochettino stated. (ANI)
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