Why Robert Sanchez and Wesley Fofana are not in Chelsea squad for Man City clash

Robert Sanchez and Wesley Fofana have been ruled out of Chelsea's clash against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium. The goalkeeper has suffered a small muscle problem, while the defender has a fever.

Filip Jorgensen has replaced Sanchez between the sticks, and Benoit Badiashile has come in for Fofana. The duo established themselves as key players under Enzo Maresca, who stepped down as head coach on New Year's Day, so their absences come as huge blows.

Calum McFarlane, who will be in the dugout on Sunday afternoon, will be determined to help the Blues return to winning ways after three games across all competitions without a victory. Speaking before the match, he provided an update on the duo.

"Rob felt his injury in the warm-up against Bournemouth," said McFarlane. "He played through it and trained on Friday, and then yesterday felt like he wasn't right. Wes [Fofana] trained well yesterday but woke up today with a really high temperature so he's ill and can't play."

The Chelsea Under-21s head coach will be joined by his assistant coaches, Andy Ross and James Simmons, and analyst, Adam Keith, as well as Bernardo Cueva, who remains the first-team set-piece coach.

At Cobham on Friday afternoon, McFarlane, who only joined the west Londoners from Southampton in July, heaped praise on Reece James for his leadership during such a rocky period.

When asked about his first training session in charge, the interim Chelsea boss said: "There's a really good culture at the club, in terms of the support from the first team, the directors, everyone seems interested.

"There's always a bit of an academy presence there [at U21s matches]. In all honesty, it's exactly the same as it always has been. We're all here for the same reason. Training was great today, there was a really good energy."

On how the players have reacted to Maresca's departure, McFarlane said: "You don't know what to expect, really, but the energy and enthusiasm was exceptional today. They were really focused, driven and hungry.

"We have a massive game on Sunday. Reece has been brilliant, he has been a real leader in the group and helped the staff and players to get ready for Sunday."

Sunderland drew to Manchester City at the Stadium of Light on Thursday night. Pep Guardiola's side had won each of their previous eight games across all competitions before facing the Black Cats, including a clash against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu in the UEFA Champions League.

On facing the Spaniard, McFarlane said: "Ultimately, it's a football match. It's not about me, my first game or playing against Pep - it's Chelsea vs City. Two top sides, we'll go there and compete. We've seen this year how this team can do in big moments."

He continued: "It's difficult to pick a team. You're going to leave people out and disappoint people. We'll pick the best team that we feel is ready to play that game and compete."

On how he, his staff and the players have prepared for the clash, McFarlane said: "We found out after lunchtime yesterday, so we had the whole of yesterday to watch their games and see what they look like.

"Quite lucky they played last night, so we could see that game."

McFarlane added: "I think that we know we're up against a really good team in really good form with a great manager, but we have a really good team. I wouldn't say we have nothing to lose, no."