Chelsea Handed Overdue Fitness Boost As Long-Term Absentee Nears Return

Injuries in the Blues squad have put extra strain on the available players this season.

More options could soon be available. | Robbie Jay Barratt/AMA/Getty Images

Chelsea midfielder Roméo Lavia is reported to finally be nearing his return to full fitness, having missed more than three months during his latest injury absence since early November.

Lavia was last seen on the pitch for the 2–2 Champions League draw against Qarabağ and has missed 98 games with injuries so far, totalling 608 days, since he joined the Blues in a £58 million ($78.2 million) transfer from Southampton in the summer of 2023.

Chelsea manager Liam Rosenior confirmed at the end of January that Lavia had returned to training but stressed the need for “more patience” for getting back to playing and refused to put a timeframe on it. “If they don’t make that day, it looks bad on them when I know how hard Roméo is working.”

Three weeks on, the Daily Mail reports that Lavia is “nearing the end of a detailed rehabilitation programme,” part of Chelsea’s “meticulous” plan to avoid future problems.

The one-cap Belgium international continued to work and train at the start of this week when the rest of the team were given days off to rest on Monday and Tuesday. The likelihood is that even when he is passed fully fit, Lavia will still be treated with caution and “eased” back in.

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Lavia Can Alleviate Pressure on Chelsea Midfielders

Roméo Lavia has been back in training since the end of January. | Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC/Getty Images

With Lavia and Dário Essugo, who hasn’t played since the Club World Cup because of injury, both sidelined, Chelsea’s natural central midfield cover behind preferred starters Enzo Fernández and Moisés Caicedo has been limited to just Andrey Santos.

With Fernández also often deployed further forward to cover for Cole Palmer’s absences, right backs Reece James and Malo Gusto have been asked to double as emergency midfielders, too.

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Chelsea’s Busy Fixture List to March International Break

Despite losing to Arsenal in a recent Carabao Cup semi-final, Chelsea remain active in three competitions looking ahead to March and the rest of the campaign. A maximum of 23 potential games still remain across the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup. The minimum is 15.

Even just between now and the first international break of 2026 at the end of March, the Blues have got to play eight times in a month across all three competitions. As well as Premier League fixtures, Rosenior’s team face Wrexham in the FA Cup fifth round on March 7, and one of Paris Saint-Germain, Monaco, Newcastle United or Qarabağ in the Champions League last 16 on March 10/11 and 17/18.

A quirk of the calendar could see them face Newcastle three times back-to-back over a single week, with the Magpies cruising from the first leg of their Champions League playoff and a Premier League meeting coincidentally already scheduled for in between the last 16 legs.

Date	Fixture	Competition
Feb. 21, 2026	Chelsea vs. Burnley	Premier League
March 1, 2026	Arsenal vs. Chelsea	Premier League
March 4, 2026	Aston Villa vs. Chelsea	Premier League
March 7, 2026	Wrexham vs. Chelsea	FA Cup
March 10/11, 2026	TBD vs. Chelsea	Champions League
March 14, 2026	Chelsea vs. Newcastle	Premier League
March 17/18, 2026	Chelsea vs. TBD	Champions League
March 21, 2026	Everton vs. Chelsea	Premier League

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