Chelsea’s Andreas Christensen stood himself down from selection for FA Cup final

Andreas Christensen stood himself down from selection for Chelsea’s FA Cup final, the PA news agency understands.

Christensen was not involved in the match squad for Saturday’s 6-5 penalty shoot-out loss to Liverpool, but it is understood the Denmark defender was not injured.

Thiago Silva played through the pain of a knee problem sustained during the punishing Wembley clash, with Malang Sarr and Cesar Azpilicueta the Blues’ defensive options on the bench.

Christensen is understood to be poised to complete a free-transfer switch to Barcelona when the season finishes, bringing to an end a decade at Stamford Bridge.

The 26-year-old has battled a number of minor injury and illness issues in recent weeks, but his withdrawal from Saturday’s crunch clash left the Blues short handed.

Chelsea host Leicester on Thursday and Watford on Sunday in a bid to close out a third-placed Premier League finish, with Christensen’s availability now uncertain.

The 54-cap centre-back can still have the chance to add a final word to his Chelsea career, but his absence on Saturday proved a surprise given his lack of injury.

To a man, we gave it everything. We are Chelsea, we'll be back.