The Chelsea head coach confirmed that Andreas Christensen, who came off at half-time last night at Barnsley, had not suffered any lasting damage.

‘It was not concussion-related at all,’ he said. ‘It was a headache so we took him off.’

Another defender, Thiago Silva, would not recover in time to feature against the Magpies, with Tuchel focusing on a return later in the month.

‘It’s too soon for sure for Thiago,’ continued Tuchel. ‘We are aiming for Southampton and trying hard so let’s see if we make it but we cannot promise.’

Meanwhile, the German duo of Timo Werner and Kai Havertz had contrasting chances of being involved.

‘It’s Friday and we still have three training sessions before the game,’ he added. ‘It should be absolutely okay for Timo to come back but maybe too close for Kai.

‘I’m not sure if he’s out [of training] today but he will be missing this match as well.’