Mauricio Pochettino has confirmed that Romeo Lavia picked up an injury in Chelsea’s win over Crystal Palace. The 19-year-old replaced Ian Maatsen in the 58th minute on Wednesday and was visibly struggling late in the game.
Pochettino said in Friday’s pre-match press conference: “Lavia felt something and we need to check and hope it’s not too bad. We are a little bit worried. If you watch the game, I had to change his position at the end because he was struggling to run.”
Lavia was making his Premier League debut for Chelsea, having spent the last four months on the treatment table. The Belgian international injured his ankle during a training session in August and suffered setbacks on the road to recovery.
He’s already missed 22 games in all competitions and Chelsea are worried that number could rise. Pochettino added: “We will see what is going on. We hope it’s not a big issue and he can be with us again. He’s an important player that we recovered, and it’s going to be a shame if we cannot use him in the next few games.”
The Blues spent £58m on Lavia in August, beating out Liverpool for his signature, so big things were expected. The 32 minutes he had against Palace are all supporters and staff have seen so far, however. Pochettino has been ruing his luck all season, as Chelsea have an injury list that isn’t getting smaller.
Chelsea aren’t short of options with Lavia, Carney Chukwuemeka, Lesley Ugochukwu, Moisés Caicedo, Enzo Fernández and Conor Gallagher. But only Caicedo, Fernandez and Gallagher have started more than three league games this season.
Not worth the risk

The Blues travel to Kenilworth Road to face Luton Town on Saturday afternoon, so Lavia might not be risked. Chelsea managed Christopher Nkunku’s minutes when he returned from injury and Lavia will likely be no different.
Pochettino has enough options in his stead, so the Belgian can be afforded a rest. Chelsea haven’t had Lavia all season, so they won’t rush his return at the expense of a setback. It’s just a blow as he impressed in the time he spent on the pitch.
Lavia will be evaluated before an official decision is made though, so Chelsea will let the experts decide whether he’s available or not.