Chelsea are set to be without Levi Colwill for the majority of the campaign after the defender sustained an ACL injury in training.
Last week, Enzo Maresca spoke about Colwill in a press conference, revealing that the 22-year-old had picked up an injury.
He had hoped that Colwill would not be out for too long, but since then it has emerged that the centre-back has done damage to his ACL.
He has now had surgery and is expected to miss most of the 2025/26 season, but Chelsea signing a new centre-half to replace him is unlikely.
Levi Colwill of Chelsea during the Premier League match between Leicester City FC and Chelsea
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Trevoh Chalobah sale needed before new centre-back signing
It is not impossible that Chelsea go out and buy a new central defender, but everything seemingly hinges on the future of Colwill’s teammate Trevoh Chalobah.
According to BBC Sport, the Blues are reluctant to sign someone to replace Colwill and will only enter the market if Chalobah is sold.
Chelsea have other centre-halves they can sell as well, such as Benoit Badiashile, but the same outlet claims that Chalobah is the only name that the Club World Cup winners are willing to offload.
In June, it was claimed that Chelsea were willing to let Chalobah leave the club, so nothing seems to have changed since then.
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Despite the club’s willingness to let the 26-year-old go, he continues to be someone Maresca relies on. He started in both of Chelsea’s pre-season games against AC Milan and Bayer Leverkusen, helping his side to secure two wins.
Trevoh Chalobah poses with the trophy after Chelsea FC v Paris Saint-Germain: Final - FIFA Club World Cup 2025
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Trevoh Chalobah’s stance on leaving Chelsea
Chalobah is a popular figure at Stamford Bridge. The England international came through Chelsea’s academy so, understandably, plenty of supporters do not want to see him go.
Similarly, Chalobah does not want to depart either. BBC Sport’s report states that the former Crystal Palace loanee is not pushing for an exit this summer.
As things stand, then, the Conference League holders will begin the new season with just Chalobah, Wesley Fofana and Tosin Adarabioyo as their centre-back options.
Like Colwill, Badiashile is also out injured. Jorrel Hato and Josh Acheampong can also play in central defence, though.
When Chalobah first returned from his loan at Palace last term, Adarabioyo thought he was “amazing” (via southlondon.co.uk), so he will not want to see his teammate depart during this transfer window.