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Romeo Lavia is set to miss a minimum of one month for Chelsea, though possibly longer, depending on how the 21-year-old recovers from his newest muscular injury.
Lavia picked up a quad problem during his side’s 2-2 Champions League draw with Qarabag in Baku, Azerbaijan last week, as Moises Caicedo replaced him after eight minutes.
It is hoped Lavia can return in time to help with the congested winter period with the Blues to continue assessing him over the coming weeks, though in the meantime, he is set to miss several significant matches.
That includes two home clashes at the end of this month against Barcelona in the Champions League and Arsenal in the Premier League.
Lavia’s Chelsea career has been plagued by problems.
The Qarabag game represented his 30th appearance, though it was the club’s 130th played overall since signing him in August 2023.
Romeo Lavia is set to miss a minimum of one month for Chelsea after his latest injury setback
It increases the reliance on Moises Caicedo, who continues to shine for Enzo Maresca's side
The midfielder with a single cap for Belgium cost £58million when he joined from Southampton.
Lavia being sidelined and the ongoing absence of summer signing Dario Essugo will continue to add to the pressure on Caicedo, who is one of those to have been name-checked by Blues boss Enzo Maresca as in need of protection.
Nobody has played more minutes in the Premier League for Chelsea this season than the 24-year-old Ecuadorian – 945 out of their 990 in total.
While he has shown his reliability, Caicedo has been used more than Maresca would have liked out of necessity.
