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Chelsea’s French defender #05 Maxence Lacroix leaves the pitch after picking up an injury during the English League Cup fourth round football match between Liverpool and Chelsea at Anfield in Liverpool, north west England on October 28, 2026. (Photo by Darren Staples / AFP via Getty Images) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or ‘live’ services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No video emulation. Social media in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No use in betting publications, games or single club/league/player publications. /
On Wednesday night, Chelsea fans had their hearts in their mouths when Maxence Lacroix clutched his hamstring towards the end of the first half during the penalty shootout defeat to Liverpool.
With Chelsea looking to hold out until half-time after conceding a penalty, Lacroix was backpedalling when he immediately grabbed his hamstring. He looked in pain as he hobbled off the Anfield pitch.
Glen Johnson thinks it’s a bad injury, having taken so long for Lacroix to get himself to the tunnel. But what should concern Chelsea supporters and Xabi Alonso is Lacroix’s almost blemish-free injury history.
READ MORE:Everything Alonso said about Estevao’s lack of game time with winger unhappy
Maxence Lacroix’s injury history according to TransferMarkt
One of Lacroix’s biggest advantages is that he is always available. Crystal Palace played 105 games in the two seasons with Lacroix on the books. He played in 98 of those, rested or suspended for the other seven.
Lacroix clocked up 130 appearances for Wolfsburg, missing 28 games. Just six of those were due to injury or illness. This is a player who doesn’t get injured; he doesn’t miss games, as per his TransferMarkt record.
RATE 1-10: Lacroix confirmed, how good is Chelsea's £52m deal? 🔥
8/10 for now
He's tuff strong and knows how to be a proper defence enforcer underestimate chelsea at your own risk . We finishing at the top 💙
One of the best passers around as well!
Four were due to a shoulder injury at the end of the 2022-23 season. One game was due to muscular fatigue and another, typically, was due to testing positive for Covid-19. Otherwise, he has been available.
The shoulder injury kept Lacroix out for 71 days, though the largest bulk of that was pre-season and an impact injury is hardly a concern long-term. The muscular injury and Covid-19 were about seven days.
There are a few ways to look at this, then. Lacroix’s injury is a one-off, a blip in an otherwise near-perfect injury record. While it is a blow that he could miss a few games, it is not something to be worried about.
Or Lacroix’s injury is a sign of things to come. He has gotten lucky until now, and this is the first sign that he might become injury-prone. It is certainly ironic, given he was signed because he’s rarely injured.
Lacroix’s impending absence leaves Chelsea in defensive crisis
Alonso has not confirmed how long Lacroix will be missing, with the defender requiring scans before a timescale can be determined. But the look on Alonso’s face when asked about Lacroix was worrying.
Asked whether João Pedro would be absent until after the international break, Alonso replied “probably”. If Lacroix faces a similar timeframe, Chelsea could be without their £52m ace for the next two matches.
Meanwhile, France may also have to manage without him during the international break. However, Lacroix’s own recovery timeline remains unclear until the results of his hamstring scans are known.
More so, because Alonso knows what a big miss Lacroix will be. Of all of Chelsea’s defenders this term, the £52m summer signing has provided the most consistency. Even more so than Levi Colwill.
Colwill will now become the most senior option in defence, with Wesley Fofana’s questionable form a doubt for Chelsea moving forward. Josh Acheampong and Jorrel Hato can also play in central defence.
But Lacroix’s absence, with difficult games against Man United and Sunderland away up next, is a hammer blow for Alonso as the Chelsea boss tries to instil consistency but is hamstrung, ironically, by injury.