Chelsea star’s injury nightmare continues after latest Calum McFarlane update

Chelsea’s problems with injuries have continued with Romeo Lavia the latest to suffer a setback.

Having missed out on last weekend’s FA Cup final against Manchester City, it seemed Lavia had picked up another knock, and Calum McFarlane has confirmed those suspicisions.

Lavia is a top player when available, but the trouble is, he seldom is. The 22-year-old has been notorious with injuries since he joined from Southampton in 2023.

In fact, the Belgian has missed more games than he’s played for the Blues — a truly absymal record and one that’s becoming impossible to ignore.

And the latest update from McFarlane is only going to increase concerns surrounding the midfielder’s long-term fitness ahead of next season, and Xabi Alonso’s imminent arrival.

Calum McFarlane confirms another Romeo Lavia injury issue

Speaking to BBC Sport reporters ahead of Chelsea’s next game against Spurs, McFarlane confirmed Lavia was left out of the FA Cup final after suffering a setback in the game’s build-up.

“Romeo took a slight knock to the build-up to the game and we didn’t want to take the risk. We just have to be careful.”

Although it doesn’t sound like the 22-year-old’s injury is overly serious, his physical issues just keep mounting.

Having already missed nearly 100 matches for Chelsea, Lavia is arguably the side’s most unreliable player, and in this era of football, availability is it’s own attribute.

At this point, even a minor injury involving the former Southampton midfielder causes frustration because his body simply doesn’t allowed him to build any sort of consistency or momentum.

Chelsea have looked far more balanced, and with greater depth, whenever Lavia, Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez have all been available together, but those moments have been far too rare.

Xabi Alonso may need to make tough call

Alonso will have a lot to sort out in the summer.

Chelsea’s goalkeeper situation will be addressed and a new striker signed as the club look to find an upgrade on Liam Delap. There will also be at least one centre-back brought in to provide stability at the back.

And it seems midfield will also be an area of consideration, especially, and even more so, because of Lavia’s continued plight with injuries.

While a defensive midfielder may not be priority, it may have to be at some stage. The Blues, with Alonso’s recruitment influence, may have no choice but to sanction Lavia’s departure; something BlueCo have been considering for a while.