Sheffield United: Chris Wilder issues injury update over key man ahead of Premier League clash with Chelsea

John Fleck of Sheffield Utd takes a seat during the Premier League match against Leicester: Simon Bellis/Sportimage

The midfielder was forced off the field inside the first 30 minutes of United’s victory over Crystal Palace just over a week ago, and missed Saturday’s home defeat to Leicester City as a result.

Fleck, like a number of his teammates, will be excused from Carabao Cup duty against Blackburn Rovers on Tuesday evening and Wilder is ‘hopeful’ that he’ll be passed fit for the trip to Stamford Bridge.

“He wasn’t close at all for Saturday, but we’ve got a full week now and hopefully he’ll be out on the grass pretty early,” Wilder said.

“We’ve got a couple of bumps and bruises from the weekend, which’ll mean a few players miss Tuesday.

“But there’s nothing long term; we’ve got no long-term injuries at all.

“We’re hopeful John will be ready for the weekend and if he does make it, I expect we’ll have a full hit to choose from.”