Chelsea forward Christopher Nkunku will spend another period on the sidelines with an injury sustained in the EFL Cup final.

On Sunday afternoon, the Blues succumbed 1-0 to Liverpool at Wembley Stadium, going down by a 1-0 scoreline courtesy of Virgil van Dijk's 118th-minute winner.

Nkunku had been introduced as a substitute in the 67th minute but failed to have an impact in the final third as Chelsea again struggled in front of goal.

The France international had been making his fourth outing from the bench in succession, yet he had been available for six fixtures in a row since recovering from a hip injury.

However, Nkunku is now in line to be absent for another period of games, a consequence of an unspecified issue picked up during the game at the weekend.

The 26-year-old has also missed four-and-a-half months of action with a knee injury sustained in pre-season, restricting him to a total of two starts and eight substitute outings in a Chelsea shirt since joining from RB Leipzig.

Speaking at a press conference ahead of Wednesday's FA Cup fifth-round tie with Leeds United, Pochettino cut a frustrated figure, admitting that Nkunku is yet to show the quality and consistency from his time in Germany.

Pochettino said: "It is difficult for him. We were watching and he was flying in pre-season until he got the knee injury and now it's nearly eight months and even when he was ready to be involved again, he was never the same player as before.

"We have in our head, the best Nkunku that everyone knows from Germany, but that isn't the same player. Then sometimes that is why it is unfair to judge.

"The situation is always completely different. In that case, for the team, yes it is not a good thing for us. We cannot provide the team a player that can perform and score goals."

When asked when Nkunku may return, the Argentine added: "We need to see. At the moment, it's three or four weeks maybe out. We hope no more."

Although Cole Palmer has sometimes been used as a false nine, Nicolas Jackson is currently Chelsea's only recognised senior striker, with Armando Broja having been loaned out to Fulham.

Eighteen-year-old Brazilian forward Deivid Washington, who has been restricted to two substitute outings in the first team this season, appears in line to come back into contention after three recent appearances for Chelsea Under-21s in Premier League 2.