Two Chelsea stars ruled out of Aston Villa clash

Chelsea will be without goalkeeper Edouard Mendy and attacker Christian Pulisic for their Carabao Cup clash against Aston Villa on Wednesday. The duo are nursing injuries and have yet to return to training.

Pulisic injured his ankle on international duty and has not featured for Chelsea this month. Mendy, meanwhile, got injured in the Champions League clash against Zenit St. Petersburg and missed the 3-0 win against Tottenham Hotspur over the weekend.

Speaking to the media ahead of Wednesday's game against Villa at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel confirmed Mendy's absence. The German is, however, hopeful the keeper can return in time for Saturday's Premier League game against Manchester City.

"Mendy cannot play, he was not in training," Tuchel said. "We try to do everything for Saturday and to reintegrate him tomorrow into individual training and Thursday's team training. I think it's possible but it's a race against pain and a race against time. I hope he will be back in team training on Thursday and if it goes well, he is ready for Saturday. I don't know right now."

Pulisic is also expected to return for the crunch game against the Premier League champions.

What happened to Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy?

Edouard Mendy picked up a knock in training before Chelsea's Champions League match against Zenit St. Petersburg. The goalkeeper featured in the starting XI but the injury appeared to worsen during the closing stages of the match.

Kepa Arrizabalaga replaced Mendy in goal against Spurs and made two crucial saves as Chelsea ran out 3-0 winners. Tuchel was delighted with the Spaniard's display on Sunday.

"It (Mendy's injury) comes from the last-minute kick against Zenit in the Champions League. It is very painful and he did not feel 100 per cent comfortable going for a full stretch or to land on it. So we decided to go with 100 per cent and that was Kepa. I'm happy Kepa played a crucial role and kept a clean sheet. This is what he deserves and I am happy that he could," said Tuchel.

Kepa is expected to continue in goal on Wednesday night against Villa.