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CHELSEA’S MIDFIELD CRISIS DEEPENS AS ROMEO LAVIA FACES LENGTHY ABSENCE

Chelsea's injury crisis deepens as Romeo Lavia is ruled out for at least a month with a quadricep injury. The £53m midfielder, with just four starts this season, faces another lengthy spell on the sidelines.

Chelsea’s midfield crisis deepens as Romeo Lavia faces lengthy absence
Lavia’s injury keeps him sidelined weeks - COURTESY/PHOTO

Romeo Lavia sustained a quadricep injury during Chelsea's 2-2 draw with Qarabag, and he will be sidelined for at least a month.

After sustaining an injury during the Club World Cup, the 21-year-old has only started four games this season and has yet to play 90 minutes for Chelsea. He will now likely miss another extended period of time due to injury.

Lavia has made 29 appearances in the two and a half years since moving from Southampton for £53 million, and Chelsea, who have been cautious to ease the midfielder back into action, has suffered a serious setback with his most recent injury.

Even though Lavia was only allowed to play one game per week due to a stringent fitness regimen, the Belgian international is now anticipated to miss matches against Burnley, Barcelona, Arsenal, Leeds, Bournemouth, and Atalanta.

With Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez both playing through discomfort in recent weeks as Chelsea's injury issues worsen, Lavia's injury comes at a time when Enzo Maresca had been eager to switch up his midfield options.

Chelsea's 3-0 victory over Wolves moved them up to third place in the Premier League standings, but they will have a busy schedule of games following the international break.

Levi Colwill and Dario Essugo are still long-term absences, but the Blues hope to be able to welcome back Cole Palmer and Benoit Badiashile following the internationals.

In January, will Chelsea look to replace Lavia?


Lavia's longevity at Stamford Bridge is still in doubt because he has only played 1,341 minutes of football in 30 appearances and has never finished a full game for Chelsea.

Although Maresca greatly admires the former Manchester City star, the Italian is being forced to rely more on other players due to his frequent absences.

Chelsea may begin thinking about a loan exit for Lavia at some point in 2026 since they are unable to recover even a small portion of the transfer money they paid in 2023.

WHY WAS COLE PALMER SUBBED? THE REAL REASON BEHIND THE STAMFORD BRIDGE BOOS

Fans booed as Cole Palmer was subbed in Chelsea's draw with Bournemouth. Learn why Maresca was absent and what’s next for the Blues.

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Managing Cole Palmer’s return

After Chelsea's 2-2 tie with Bournemouth, assistant coach Willy Caballero defended the choice to sub off Cole Palmer, even though fans at Stamford Bridge were angry about Enzo Maresca's move.

Fans booed, yelling, You don't know what you're doing! when Palmer—who'd been one of the team's better players—was taken out in the 63rd minute. The home team was trying to score and break their bad Premier League streak at the time.

Chelsea has only won one of their last seven league games. Caballero said afterward that head coach Enzo Maresca, who wasn't there for the post-game interviews due to illness, is still a role model for everyone at the club.

Still, the pressure is on the coach after yet another result slipped away. Chelsea has now lost 13 points at home from winning positions.

The mood got especially sour when Palmer, who just came back from an injury, was taken off in the second half.

Every fan wants the best players on the field, Caballero said. We do, too. But Cole is coming back from a long injury. So we have to figure out the best substitutions to win the game while also keeping our players healthy. We need them for the entire season.

Caballero said about Maresca's absence, "He hasn't been feeling well for the past two days." He had a fever two days ago. He did the last two practices because he wanted to get the team ready. But after the game, he went to the locker room and asked me to fill in because he wasn't feeling well.

He's handling it well and is very professional. He puts in a lot of hours every day, even when he wasn't feeling well the last two days. He loves to train and coach. He's a role model for me and the rest of the staff.

Bournemouth took the lead after six minutes when David Brooks scored on his second try after Robert Sanchez made a save. Then, Palmer scored a penalty to tie the game for Chelsea.

Next, Enzo Fernandez put the home team ahead, but the Blues couldn't hold on to their lead again. Justin Kluivert tied the score before halftime after Chelsea failed to handle a long throw-in from Antoine Semenyo.

There's been a lot of talk that this would be Semenyo's last game for Bournemouth before he moves to Manchester City soon. Before leaving the field, he seemed to say goodbye to the fans who had traveled to see the game.

Still, head coach Andoni Iraola was sure he'd play against Arsenal on Saturday.

It's not his last game here with us, he said. I can't say for sure, but I think he'll play.

He needs to rest. We've played two tough games in three days. We have Arsenal at home, so we're getting ready for another one, a tough game against the leaders. He's going to be important for us.

BREAKING: ENZO MARESCA SKIPS MEDIA AS CHELSEA CRISIS DEEPENS! GET THE HEALTH UPDATE

Enzo Maresca missed the post-match media due to a fever after Chelsea's 2-2 draw. Willy Caballero provides an urgent update on his health.

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Chelsea's winless run continues as Maresca falls ill

Enzo Maresca skipped media interviews after Chelsea's 2-2 tie with Bournemouth because he was sick.

The Blues coach was supposed to chat after his team snagged a point against Bournemouth at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday night.

But right before he was about to talk about the game, news dropped that Maresca wasn't feeling good.

So, his assistant, Willy Caballero, stepped in to handle things in west London.

Caballero shared an update on Maresca: He's been under the weather for a couple of days, Caballero said. He had a fever two days ago.

After the game, he went to the locker room and asked me to fill in for him since he wasn't feeling well.

Caballero was asked if he'd be in charge against Manchester City on Sunday, like he was against Villa during Maresca's suspension.

"I'm not sure," he said. I just want Enzo to get better. I think he'll be fine in a day or two.

The draw with Bournemouth means Chelsea has only won one of their last seven Premier League games.

Fans were clearly annoyed during the second half when Cole Palmer was subbed out for Joao Pedro.

Palmer just got back to playing regularly after a groin injury, but some Chelsea fans wondered why he was taken out.

About the boos, Caballero said, "Of course, every fan wants their best players on the field, and so do we."

But Cole is coming off a long injury, so we have to figure out the right subs for the game and also look out for our players since we didn't have him for a while.

Chelsea and Bournemouth had a boring 0-0 draw in their previous match earlier in the month.

But the game at Stamford Bridge was totally different, with Bournemouth taking the lead early on through David Brooks.

Palmer leveled the score with a penalty, and then Enzo Fernandez blasted a shot into the top corner to put Chelsea ahead.

But Chelsea failed to defend a long throw for the second time, allowing Justin Kluivert to score for Bournemouth.

After playing City, Chelsea will face their west London rivals Fulham before an FA Cup game away against Charlton Athletic.

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