It was very notable that after a strong start to the season, Chelsea were now beginning to contend with a number of injury worries.
As well as longer-term absentees Reece James and Wesley Fofana, the Blues were down a number of key players for the West London derby against Brentford yesterday.
Romeo Lavia was arguably the biggest name to miss out. Chelsea are however hopeful Lavia will return for the next game against Everton.
With the fixtures mounting up in all competitions, the squad planning that has received so much praise is about to be put to the test at Stamford Bridge.
Benoit Badiashile expected to be injured for a while at Chelsea
Of those who started against Tottenham last week, Benoit Badiashile was another who didn’t start, and he wasn’t in the matchday squad either.
It emerged that he had missed out due to an injury, with Enzo Maresca unable to comment on when he could be expected to return to action.
According to The Athletic though, it can be believed that Badhiashile is set for a decent spell out on the sidelines.
The Frenchman was in the process of turning around his form following a tough start to the season. Jason Cundy recently described Badiashile as ‘excellent’.
Chelsea’s mounting injury list
With Fofana already on the sidelines for at least a few more weeks, Chelsea are beginning to endure somewhat of a crisis at the back in terms of available centre-backs.
Levi Colwill has been a near ever-present in the Premier League this season, however his partner has been changing a lot as of late.
Last night saw Tosin Adarabioyo start alongside the England international at the back, and impress greatly with a commanding performance against Brentford.
Axel Disasi is another option to play, however it is clear that he has not been the number one choice as far as Maresca is concerned to play at the heart of defence.
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