EPL: Potter names 3 Chelsea players he can't replace ahead of Man City clash

Chelsea manager Graham Potter has lamented injuries to key members of his squad ahead of Thursday night's clash against Manchester City.

The Blues welcome champions 19 points from league leaders Arsenal.

Potter, who replaced Thomas Tuchel in September, admitted it hasn't been easy for him.

He told Sky Sports: "You have to be stable, that helps. The situation we found ourselves in was quite extreme, in terms of how many games we played in the Champions League and then we had injuries on key players.

"At the end of the day, you try to find a solution: How do you replace Reece James? How do you replace N'Golo Kante? How do you replace Wesley Fofana? These are guys who are key players for us. I don't want don't make excuses, it's like them. We need stability and we're working on it.

"We have to be consistent with form and try to be consistent with the players we have. We've lost James and Mason Mount since our last home game. That's just the life you have as a football manager. This affects consistency.

"When you play Saturday, Tuesday, Saturday, Tuesday, it would be nice to say we have 11 players and we will deploy them all the time, but that's not the reality you have. You have to adjust , and of course, if the results don't go well, you get criticized for it. If you don't change your formation and you lose, you get criticized. That's how it is. You have to accept it."< /p>