Ross Barkley is braced to make his Chelsea debut after scoring the winner in a secret match behind closed doors
£15million midfielder has yet to play this season following surgery on a hamstring injury but has been passed fit to face Brighton on Saturday
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ROSS BARKLEY has been cleared to make his debut for Chelsea on Saturday after a blistering start to his career for them in a secret practice match.
The new £15million midfielder scored the winner in a 3-2 victory over Queens Park Rangers at Chelsea’s Surrey training ground on Thursday in a stern test of his hamstring injury.
It is a much-needed boost for head coach Antonio Conte who has been hit by a sudden selection crisis ahead of the trip to Brighton.
Barkley has not played this season and underwent surgery on his leg muscle before joining Chelsea on January 5.
But he has been passed fit after the behind-closed-doors game and may now be thrown straight into the starting line up at Brighton although he is more likely to start on the bench.
Conte prefers to bed his new signings in slowly but a hamstring injury to fellow midfielder Cesc Fabregas could force him into an emergency reshuffle at the heart of his team.
Conte will also be without wideman Pedro who must serve a one game ban after being sent off in Wednesday’s controversial FA Cup win over Norwich City.
Striker Alvaro Morata is also suspended for the game after he too was dismissed for picking up two yellow cards in the same game.
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Meanwhile the Italian gaffer is closing in on his second deal of January with a £20 million move for Roma defender Emerson Palmieri.
Talks are well underway to secure a 'dream' move for the Brazil-born left back, according to the player's agent.
Chelsea head coach Antonio Conte wants extra strength in depth to help Marcos Alonso as the fixtures pile up in the second half of the season.
And Palmieri would not be cup tied for the Champions League as he has made just one 15 minute sub appearance in Serie A and a whole game in the Italian Cup this season.