Chelsea will return to Premier League football with a difficult trip to Newcastle United next Saturday. The Blues will come into the contest full of confidence after beating Tottenham and holding Manchester City in their last two games.

Mauricio Pochettino has a number of injury headaches ahead of the festive period with Christopher Nkunku, Wesley Fofana, Romeo Lavia, Carney Chukwuemeka and Trevoh Chalobah all sidelined. There is hope that Nkunku will return to make his competitive debut after the international break, though it's expected that his workload will be managed.

The Blues aren't the only team to have been suffering with injuries. After Erling Haaland became the latest casualty while away with Norway, there are now 100 Premier League players out injured.

At the top of that list, alongside Sheffield United, with nine players out is Newcastle. The Magpies are currently staring down the very real possibility of being without 12 players for the game on November 25 and matters just keep getting worse.

Eddie Howe's men were without 11 first-team players for the 2-0 loss at Bournemouth before the international break. Both Fabian Schar and Sean Longstaff played through injuries while Almiron was forced off in the first half with a hamstring injury.

"We have a whole host of players and we need them back as soon as we can," Howe said of the situation as a whole. "We have a busy December as well so it's not a good mix but something we have to get used to.

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"The break has come at a good time for us but I don't necessarily think it will bring a flood of players back. We have long-term injured players. Hopefully, we can get one or two back, while Bruno [Guimaraes] was suspended at a bad time. We didn't have the options on the bench to change things and Miggy's [Almiron] injury made things even harder."

Striker Alexander Isak is out with a groin injury after limping off in the Champions League loss to Borussia Dortmund. The Sweden international has missed the last five games but has been spotted back on the grass.

Howe is hopeful of seeing him come back for Chelsea. "Alex is doing well and is working on his fitness levels," he said. "We are building up his load, and the plan is for him to return after the international break."

Harvey Barnes (foot), Callum Wilson (hamstring), Jacob Murphy (shoulder), Dan Burn (back), Elliot Anderson (back), Matt Targett (hamstring) and Sven Botman (knee) will all miss the Chelsea game. Sandro Tonali will also be unavailable after being banned for breaking Italian betting regulations.

The long list of injuries leaves Newcastle short on options. Anthony Gordon, Joelinton and Matt Ritchie led the line last time out but struggled to break Bournemouth down.

However, things could be getting worse for Newcastle following news that Kieran Trippier had withdrawn from the England squad. The right-back's departure was confirmed on Sunday and is said to be due to a 'personal matter'.

Of course, there is no indication that Trippier will be out of the squad for next weekend. However, should he miss the game it would leave Howe with a complete second-choice back four.

Lewis Hall will be unavailable to play due to being on loan from the Blues this season. Tino Livramento looks likely play against his former side for the fourth time since leaving Cobham in 2021 to join Southampton.

Schar, who was rested in Switzerland's 1-1 draw with Israel, could be in contention to feature against Chelsea. Switzerland face Romania on Tuesday night so eyes will be on whether the 31-year-old features.

In better news for Newcastle, Bruno Guimaraes is back from suspension and available for selection.