'It's not a pattern' - Potter insists Chelsea haven't been 'overtraining' as injury crisis deepens in Fulham defeat

• 10 players currently injured
• Denis Zakaria latest to limp off
• Potter blames 'bad luck' for injury trouble

WHAT HAPPENED? Chelsea not only succumbed to a 2-1 defeat to Fulham in the Premier League on Thursday but also saw Denis Zakaria limp off with a leg injury in the second half at Craven Cottage, further deepening their injury crisis. Manager Potter is at a loss about the injuries and has admitted that 'it's tricky' to find a solution to the situation.

WHAT THEY SAID: When queried about whether his staff were working with the medical team, he replied: "Yeah absolutely. We’re looking all the time. We’re going over how they’re happening and trying to evaluate the whole thing. Sometimes it’s difficult when you come in halfway through the season to know how things have happened. It’s a bit of bad luck and learning going forward on how we can improve."

He then went on to admit that he is yet to figure out anything specific that's causing the injuries: "Not at the moment. The nature of them it’s almost like it’s not even a pattern. Just different problems. It’s tricky. It’s not like we’ve been overtraining or anything like that. We certainly need to get to the bottom of that."

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Potter had earlier revealed that Christian Pulisic is out for the next couple of months with Raheem Sterling also facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines. N'Golo Kante is another long-term absentee along with Reece James, Edouard Mendy and Armando Broja. The manager was unable to confirm the extent of Zakaria's injury after he limped off against Fulham. "The early assessment is that it’s at the top of his quad. He just felt it a bit when he cleared the ball. In terms of the extent, it’s too early to say," he told reporters.

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WHAT NEXT FOR CHELSEA? The Blues have 11 players who are unavailable for their next Premier League encounter against Crystal Palace, including Joao Felix who was sent off against Fulham after a rash challenge on Kenny Tete. With just two wins from 10 in all competitions, including seven defeats, it remains to be seen how Potter responds to this complex situation with his starting XI on Sunday.