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Romeo Lavia could have his Chelsea returned when Leicester comes to Stamford Bridge this weekend – but will not be fit to start.
Lavia, whose blues career has so far been plagued by injuries, has been fighting with a thigh problem since mid-December and his absence has summarized with Chelsea’s mid-season dip.
After missing five league games, he briefly returned to Bournemouth and then in the third round of the FA Cup in the third round of the FA Cup in January, but has not been seen since then. However, manager Enzo Maresca confirmed that the Belgian has returned to training this week.
“Romeo could be fit, but not play from the start,” said the Italian.
Wesley Fofana is also waiting to return his own thigh injury and could do so against his former club.
Fofana has not played since the hobble against the Aston Villa in early December, and there were initially fears that he could miss the rest of the season, but the Frenchman returned to the matchday squad as an unused replacement against Southampton last week.
After Fofana was left out of Chelsea’s European squad, he was not admitted to the FC-Kopenhagen on Thursday in the conference league, but Benoit Badishile returned from an injury in this game to trace Maresca’s options in the middle.
The blues boss has confirmed that Moises Caicedo will be removed from a suspension despite a yellow card, while Pedro Neto is expected to be rested on Thursday.
Malo Gusto is a doubt after he was forced early in Denmark, although Maresca’s rating of the full -back was optimistic after the game. Chelsea was cautious when Reece James played games in a row, which Josh Acheampong could open the door in the right -back when taste is not fit.
Predicted Chelsea XI (4-2-3-1): Jorgensen; Acheampong, Tose, Colwill, Cucurella; Caicedo, Fernandez; Sancho, Palmer, Nkunku; Neto
Injured: Madueke, Jackson, Guiu
Doubt: Lavia, enthusiasm
Not available: Mutryk
Time and date: 2 p.m. GMT on Sunday, March 9, 2025
Venue: Stamford Bridge, London
