Jose Mourinho hit with INJURY CRISIS ahead of Chelsea's clash at Shrewsbury

JOSE MOURINHO claims Chelsea are "in trouble" as they prepare to face Shrewsbury tonight as he is reduced to calling on three full internationals and two Under-21 stars to make up the numbers against their League Two opponents.

06:30, Tue, Oct 28, 2014

Kurt Zouma playing for Chelsea Kurt Zouma (right) is one of the reserves who will play for Chelsea tonight[GETTY]

Chelsea are afflicted by major injury problems for tonight's tie at the New Meadow, but Mourinho has already told Andre Schurrle (Germany), Jon Obi Mikel (Nigeria) and Mohamed Salah (Egypt), along with Under-21 players Kurt Zouma (France), and Nathan Ake (Holland) to get warmed up.

"We are in trouble because we have so many injured players," said Mourinho. "The players who didn't play [in Sunday's draw] at Manchester United - Schurrle, Salah, Zouma, Ake and Mikel - are obviously going to play."

Young defender Andreas Christensen could also feature, but Diego Costa will not.

Chelsea's nine-goal top-scorer is expected to recover from his groin problem in time to face struggling QPR at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, but he will not be risked against Shrewsbury tonight.

Costa, as well as picking up a groin strain on international duty, also contracted a stomach virus which entailed a hospital visit.

He has missed two games, including Sunday's 1-1 draw at Old Trafford, which midfielder Nemanja Matic admits left a sense of disappointment after they had controlled the game for long spells before and after Didier Drogba's superb goal. The prospect of a six-point lead at the top of the table had looked safe until Branislav Ivanovic's red card and Robin van Persie's dramatic goal.

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But Matic said: "We are still the team everyone else has to catch. It's a good feeling but also a big responsibility - everyone wants to win against us. They have extra motivation.

"We have done well and deserve to be in this position. It's good for our team, it gives us confidence. We are the only team in the League to have gone nine games without a loss so we are happy.

"Sometimes you win in the last seconds, sometimes you lose points. Of course we are not happy because we conceded a goal at that point. But we won a point and that's very important.

"We already knew Manchester City had lost, and after this game we have one more point than we did before, so it's a six-point difference between us and them, and four ahead of Southampton.

"We are not happy, but a draw against Manchester United is not bad. Every point is important, especially when you're playing against teams like United - they are strong and everyone knows they're a big club.

"Old Trafford is not an easy place to get points. In the end maybe this one will be crucial for us."

Matic believes that Drogba, who led the line at the age of 36 and scored a goal that threw back the years, is still a vital part of the Chelsea package this season.

"Didier looked like a 20-year-old out there. He was so important for us. Kept every ball, was very strong. He was one of our most important players," said Matic.

"He is always confident he will score. He has already scored one in the Champions League and now another in the League. Like every player in the team, he is getting more confidence.

"He is very important for the young players because what we're doing now, he has already done it. He is good mentally. He talks to the youngsters and makes things easier for them and for me."

Nemanja Matic playing for Chelsea Nemanja Matic has seen the positive side of Chelsea's 1-1 draw with Manchester United [GETTY]

Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who added to his steadily growing reputation with another accomplished display, said: "We controlled the game. They were dangerous but not with big chances.

"I made two saves, I tried to take the few difficult crosses that came in. In the end there was the foul, the red card, and Marouane Fellaini makes a good header. I made a good save but the ball went to the feet of Van Persie and he hit it. It was impossible to save.

"We're not happy with a point, and that says a lot about the way we're playing.

"Maybe we need to work on killing teams off. At Manchester City we hit the post but didn't create many opportunities, and on Sunday we had a lot of possession and maybe could have done better with it.

"If you're leading 1-0 you try and control the game, but in the Premier League 1-0 is not enough. Maybe going forward we have to play better, but we played a very good game."