Wesley Fofana could miss the rest of the season due to the centre-back’s fourth long-term injury since joining Chelsea in August 2022, his manager Enzo Maresca has said.
Frenchman Fofana, who joined the Blues from Leicester City for £70m plus a £5m bonus, had started all 12 Premier League games he was available for this season before suffering a hamstring injury. -legs in the 3-0 home victory. Aston Villa on December 1.
“After the tests we realized it was worse than we thought at the beginning,” Maresca said when asked why he initially estimated Fofana would be out for four or five weeks.
“Unfortunately, we’re going to lose him for a while. I don’t think this kind of injury can be compared to others.
“Before, he had never had a muscle injury. It’s a different type of injury. He was unlucky but he will be back and as good as before.
A late winner! 🇲🇦#CRYCH 21/22 ⏮️ pic.twitter.com/IEVUZE4519
– Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) January 3, 2025
Fofana’s injury history
Fofana will have missed more than 100 Chelsea matches by the time the 24-year-old recovers from his latest setback, which is his first since missing all of last season with a knee injury.
He was out for more than 10 weeks with a knee issue between October and December 2022 and missed nine games with another knee issue shortly after.
Knee injuries forced the former France international to miss 40 matches during the 2019/20 and 2020/21 campaigns, and Leicester lost him for most of the 2021/22 season with a broken leg .
Palace vs Chelsea
Chelsea travel to Crystal Palace on Saturday (15:00 GMT) aiming to win for the first time in four games and end a two-game losing streak, having been beaten 2-1 at home by Fulham on December 26 and 2 -0 at Ipswich Town on Monday.
“Against Fulham we led until the 82nd minute and then conceded two goals,” Maresca said. “Against Ipswich, it wasn’t our day. Their desire to win the match and not concede was higher.
NG with the winner at Selhurst Park! 💪#CRYCH 18/19 ⏮️ pic.twitter.com/F1rKuNYwMq
– Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) January 3, 2025
“We don’t like losing games or losing points, but it won’t affect our progress. Remember, this is a journey that started only five or six months ago.
“There are teams who have been together for five or six years and who are fighting to win the Premier League. Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool are more ready than us. We will be there – hopefully soon.
“I didn’t need to lose a match to understand that. I would have liked to tell you that we are there, because it’s not something bad, it’s something good to be in the title race.
“I didn’t need to wait for two defeats in a row to prove that I was right. I don’t think it’s bad form; we just analyze it game by game.
90.
No #PL The player has made more combined tackles and interceptions than Moi Caicedo this season. 🇪🇨💪 pic.twitter.com/fZyYtpvVUx
– Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) January 2, 2025
Maresca: Chelsea ‘never asked’ for Champions League
Maresca reiterated that he had not set himself a goal of finishing in the top four at the end of his first season in charge. “When I met the club, they never asked me to play in the Champions League this season,” he added.
“They asked me to put together a team in two, three, four or five years that could challenge for the title.”
