So, Wesley Fofana is out for the rest of this season after undergoing surgery on his hamstring.
Fofana’s injury history at Chelsea has been absolutely terrible and I do not think we can rely on him going forward. Chelsea must now prioritise buying a certain type of profile at centre back, and it has to be a physical front-foot and dominant centre back.
This situation was very strange. Enzo Maresca ruled Fofana out for the season back in January for Fofana to publicly undermine that and say he was coming back. We don’t know the ins and outs here but from the outside looking in, it looks like Fofana may have ignored medical advice and then perhaps made the issue worse. I get it, he wants to play. But also, the club might need to take a tougher stance with these things.
Whatever has happened Chelsea must now focus on buying a new and reliable centre back who ticks all the boxes and comes with more experience. I see this position now being just as important as the new striker and the goalkeeper position.
I worry too that Romeo Lavia is heading the same way now with injuries. Both of them are made of glass and we are just carrying them right now. Not giving up on Lavia just yet because he is younger and has time on his side. He’s also such an important player if he could ever stay fit.
Some players are just more injury prone than others but also, this shows how important a full recovery plan and time frame is. It could just be very unfortunate but the reality is that if you want to prolong and sustain a playing career, you have to look after yourself the best ways you can.
Chelsea will up their search for a new centre back this summer and I believe it will become more of a priority now too.
