Chelsea midfield duo spotted in training ahead of potential injury returns vs Arsenal
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Chelsea midfielders Dario Essugo and Romeo Lavia were seen in Tuesday's training session as the Blues prepare for Sunday's Premier League derby against Arsenal.
Lavia, who made a 45-minute appearance for Chelsea Under-21s last Friday, made the bench for the first team in their 1-1 Premier League draw the following day.
While the 22-year-old has yet to make his senior return since sustaining a thigh injury in the 2-2 draw with Qarabag in the Champions League back in November, it is good to see him involved in full team training.
Romeo Lavia #CFC pic.twitter.com/Rn1pRmpieO
— CFC Pics (@Mohxmmad) February 24, 2026
Essugo & Reece. #CFC pic.twitter.com/6LO73XuPjd
— Chelsea Photos (@ChelseaInPhotos) February 24, 2026
Another Chelsea midfielder looking to make his return is Essugo.
The 20-year-old joined Chelsea from Sporting in the summer.
He already made a few substitute appearances for the club in their Club World Cup-winning campaign in the summer, but has yet to feature since the start of the 2025/26 season.
Head coach Liam Rosenior previously claimed that Essugo was very close to making his return against Arsenal in January, but then suffered a setback.
The Portuguese was expected to make his return in March, so his presence in training suggests he is on track or maybe even ahead of schedule.
Interestingly, Wesley Fofana, who was shown two yellow cards against Burnley and is therefore serving a one-match suspension for the upcoming London derby, was still involved in training.
Fofana & Gusto. #CFC pic.twitter.com/1zrzp8U2kV
— Chelsea Photos (@ChelseaInPhotos) February 24, 2026
Unfortunately, there were no signs of Estevao, whose absence last weekend came as a surprise.
Rosenior explained that the Brazil international picked up a hamstring injury in training.
The extent of the injury remains unclear, but there are still a few days before Chelsea's trip to the Emirates Stadium, so Estevao could hopefully be back in time.
Malo Gusto and Jorrel Hato, who are likely to be the two left-back options amid Marc Cucurella's injury absence, also took part in training as expected.
Gerry Crisandy is a freelance writer who has covered Chelsea for many years. His work has been published on The Chelsea Chronicle and Pride of London. He grew up idolising Michael Ballack and is a firm believer in expected goals.