“Surprised but not surprised”

Mauricio Pochettino has taken aim at England after revealing Ben Chilwell will be unavailable for this weekend's clash.

Chilwell played most of the Three Lions' two friendlies against Brazil and Belgium, scoring 90 runs in the second game.

Speaking at a press conference ahead of the team's game against Burnley, Pochettino admitted that the left-back's availability was a doubt and that ideally he would have preferred to see him ease back into action.

“Surprised, not surprised, I don't know. If he can't play with us or can't play because he didn't play with us after Brentford. He played a few minutes against Leicester City . He started two games,” the Blues boss said.

“It was a surprise for us. But it was bad luck because he got into a dead end at the end of the game against Belgium.”

Palmer ready for weekend game

Cole Palmer and Connor Gallagher also feature with England. While Gallagher starred, Palmer did not feature in any of the games following his injury and was limited to training with his own individual program.

There were concerns he might not be ready to return to action, but reports suggested he had tried to return to Chelsea on Wednesday and Pochettino is confident he will be available.

Pochettino said: “Yes, he is a bit disappointed that he cannot play or perform with the national team. He had a small problem in the first game and thought he could play in the second game. He is in good shape Well, training is good too.

“I think the plan is if he trains the same way he'll be able to play on Saturday.”

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