Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca has revealed that Joao Pedro, Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez are not able to train “every day” due to fitness issues.
All three struggled to make an impact during the 2-1 home defeat to Sunderland at the weekend, and speaking about the current problems he is facing in terms of the first-team squad, Maresca said:
“I think Joao is not training every day because he’s managing himself from the injury problem. Moi [Caicedo] is exactly the same, Enzo [Fernandez] is exactly the same.”
From the looks of things, Maresca is asking several of his best players to play through the pain barrier at the moment.
The Chelsea trio have not been 100% since the international break
It should be pointed out that Caicedo did not even go away with his country earlier this month. Ecuador’s manager Sebastian Beccacece mentioned that his absence was injury-related.
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Fernandez, meanwhile, returned from international duty with Argentina early due to a swollen knee and it appears he is still having to manage the issue.
Pedro’s injury has not been publicly confirmed up until now, but it does explain why his performance levels have dropped off in recent weeks. The Brazilian has not scored or provided an assist since the 2-2 draw versus Brentford last month.
The Blues can’t repeat the same mistake they made with Palmer
It should not be forgotten that Cole Palmer was carrying an injury heading into the season, and like Caicedo/Fernandez/Pedro, he was also keen to play despite not being 100% fit.
After the Manchester United defeat, it was decided that Palmer needed several weeks’ rest to recover from a groin problem. He is not expected to return before the end of November.
Hopefully, the fitness of Caicedo, Fernandez and Pedro can be managed better by Maresca and his medical staff.
Read more about the Chelsea First Team Squad for 2025/26 here